This is the evaluation report for the Innova lateral flow device tests that are currently being used in the Liverpool pilot. https://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2020-11-11-oxford-university-and-phe-confirm-high-sensitivity-lateral-flow-tests-following

This updates prior work where they were only shown to 'pass' the tests https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/assessment-and-procurement-of-coronavirus-covid-19-tests/lateral-flow-devices-results

"The specificity of the test was recorded as 99.68% - the overall false positive rate was 0.32%, although this was lowered to 0.06% in a lab setting."

"It has an overall sensitivity of 76.8% for all PCR positive individuals but detects over 95% of individuals with high viral loads, and minimal difference between the ability of the test to pick up viral antigens in symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals."

These LFD tests are not as good at picking up cases as PCR tests.

In the case of the Innova results, it would pick up around 76.8% of those that would test positive using PCR tests (the ones we have been using)

Link to the full evaluation report here

https://www.ox.ac.uk/sites/files/oxford/media_wysiwyg/UK%20evaluation_PHE%20Porton%20Down%20%20University%20of%20Oxford_final.pdf

An advantage of these tests is that they are quick.

They can be used as part of the testing strategy.

But - importantly - if you receive a negative result, it does *not* mean that you do not have Covid.

Further commentary here https://twitter.com/ScienceShared/status/1326563891766243329?s=19

These were the papers considered by SAGE on mass testing

Consensus statement prepared by the Multidisciplinary Task and Finish Group on Mass Testing (TFMS) for the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE).

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/914931/s0712-tfms-consensus-statement-sage.pdf