The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) released a 26 October update on the use of rapid antigen detection tests (RADT) for COVID-19 in the EU/EEA.
The update introduces the list of COVID-19 RADTs that meet defined performance criteria, as well as discusses the need to monitor for and adapt tests to new SARS-CoV-2 variants.
In this context, the update introduces in silico medicine: to ensure RADTs retain high performance levels, it is crucial to monitor the impact of genetic variants on their performance. The update then introduces the potential for in silico models to predict the impact of mutations on testing.
The mention of in silico medicine in this very prevalent COVID-19 context is a positive signal for the uptake and recognition of in silico. This recognition of in silico coming from the ECDC is additionally important given its mandate in EU health, which is likely to increase further in the future.
You can find further information HERE.
