Making it clear that the kit should be used only by symptomatic individuals and immediate contacts of people who tested COVID-19 positive in laboratories, ICMR also advised against its indiscriminate use.

Here’s everything you need to know about using the rapid antigen kit for home testing.

1. If symptomatic individuals test negative by RAT, they should get themselves tested by RT-PCR immediately. 

They are advised to follow home isolation protocols while awaiting the RT-PCR test result.

2. The kit is named as CoviSelfTM(PathoCatch) COVID-19 OTC Antigen LF device and will require only nasal swab for testing.

3. You will need to download the Mylab coviself app on your mobile phones to perform the test. 

The app is available on both Google Play store and Apple store and provides a comprehensive guide on the testing procedure. Individuals will also get their results on the app.

4. The contents of the kit include, a pre-filled extraction tube, a sterile nasal swab, one test card, and a biohazard bag. 

The test card has two sections – control section and test section. The test is negative if the bar shows up only at the control section ‘C’ and positive if the bar appears on both the control section and test (T) section.

It can take 10-15 minutes for the test results to appear.

5. Reports suggest that the home testing kit by Mylab will be available in the market by next week and will be priced at ₹250 per kit.

You can store the test at room temperature and follow the instructions mentioned on the kit for safe disposal of the used kit.

6. ICMR has advised all users to click a picture of the test strip with the same mobile phone in which the app is downloaded.

This video by Mylab Discovery Solution explains the entire testing kit and process in detail.