🥈 At a close 2nd place, the Metrix molecular test has an impressive 96.7% test sensitivity and a much cheaper startup cost (though this is negated over time by the more expensive tests). Also a really good system to get.
The sensitivity isn't great (only 88.7%). However, it still FAR outperforms rapid antigen tests (like what's at Walgreens) & it's a self-contained, single-use test. There may be some situations where that's desirable.
For context: The rapid covid tests at pharmacies today are VERY bad at ruling out covid (their negative reliability hovers around 25%)😫
By contrast, these molecular tests produce negative results that are over 95% reliable! 😀
Nasal irrigation is one of the cheapest covid precautions you can add to your routine! 🧵
💧Nasal rinsing is the process of rinsing a saline solution through your nasal passages to clear out mucus, debris, and allergens. It also reduces the chances you'll become infected when exposed & reduces illness severity and duration if you're infected. (citations in 🧵)
There are great studies backing up nasal irrigation (rooted in the ancient practice of Jala Neti)
Please treat this as a recommendation of many layers to consider, and remember that any single layer is better than none. The most important layer here, masks, can be achieved for under $5!
Links to recommended gear will be at the very end of the thread
With the declining accuracy of rapid antigen tests for covid, we need other solutions. Here's a roundup of some at-home molecular tests that offer extremely high accuracy 🧵
CUE's at home test offers the highest sensitivity, at 97.4% (100% in clinical use). But the cost is high!
Metrix comes in with almost the same test sensitivity as CUE, for a quarter of the cost 🙂