Primary Diagnostic Tools for SARS-CoV-2 Infection (COVID-19): Mini Review Based on Current Challenges in Molecular Techniques and Point of Care Testing for Screening

Pandemic outbreaks are always a challenge for the health care management to control the mortality rate when the preventive measures are not established. The challenge is being faced worldwide with the outbreak of COVID-19 including the developed countries. The only solution is to control the spread by conducting massive screening and isolating affected ones from the healthy ones, which needs the development of screening methods that can reach the maximum population. The next step is to come up with vaccines. The research concentration worldwide is focussed on developing rapid diagnostics and screening at an affordable cost. Multiple studies suggest that Reverse Transcription- Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR), protein testing and Computed Tomography (CT) should be the principal diagnostic methods for routine testing/ screening in patients with COVID-19. But three factors are still indistinct in those diagnostic methods such as rapidity, sensitivity, and specificity. Thus, alternative approaches that provide higher efficiency and rapid are highly appreciated for the super spread infectious disease detection. Presently, microfluidics-based test kits alternatively called as lab-on-a-chip or Point- Of -Care Testing (POCT) have been widely used in cancer and viral detection. The ability of POCT tests to provide short time results, suitable in low resource clinics or even at home should be an attractive alternative. So, the miniaturized tools suitable for COVID-19 detection will replace the current expensive methods. Despite the limitations, the approved tests are still providing good results for this high risk pandemic. Many articles in the recent past highlighted the POCT method is not less than any other screening methods and by reviewing a wide research background, the importance of developing POCTs for screening such pandemic is presented here.