Health Authorities: "Domestic Omicron-Specific Diagnostic Kits Can Be Distributed by the End of This Month"

[Asia Economy Reporter Park So-yeon] A dedicated test kit that can quickly confirm infection with the COVID-19 Omicron variant will be distributed to public health centers nationwide by the end of this month.

On the 21st, Kim Eun-jin, head of the testing and analysis team at the Central Disease Control Headquarters, stated in a briefing, "Performance evaluation of Omicron variant PCR (polymerase chain reaction) kits being developed by domestic manufacturers is underway, and product distribution is expected to be possible by the end of December."

Team leader Kim said, "Prototypes have been produced domestically, and evaluations are being conducted on-site to determine whether the Omicron variant can be distinguished and whether other variants can be excluded. Foreign countries are also developing dedicated kits, and we understand that the speed of development by our manufacturers is similar."

The quarantine authorities currently confirm actual infection by analyzing target genomes (variant PCR) or whole genomes when patients suspected of Omicron infection appear in COVID-19 PCR tests.

Target genome analysis takes 3 days, and whole genome analysis takes 5 days. In urgent cases, emergency genome analysis can be conducted simultaneously, but it still takes 2 days.

To respond swiftly to the spread of Omicron, the authorities initiated the development of a target genome analysis method to determine Omicron infection through public-private cooperation at the end of last month, and multiple companies have developed prototypes.

The new analysis method only discriminates the characteristics of Omicron without identifying all other variants, which can significantly reduce testing time.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.