Covid-19 antigen tests may be less capable of detecting the fast-spreading Omicron variant, the Food and Drug Administration cautioned on Tuesday.

The new warning is based on preliminary studies by the National Institutes of Health’s Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics initiative using patient samples with live virus.

According to the FDA states early data suggests that antigen tests do detect the Omicron variant but may have reduced sensitivity.

Omicron’s large number of mutations have raised the possibility that it could evade protections against Covid that had come through vaccines and treatments like some monoclonal antibodies. 

Source : Food and Drug Administration