Coronavirus self-test tests will arrive this Monday to pharmacies in the city of Buenos Aires and Greater Buenos Aires, where they can now be sold to the public, while during the weekend the distribution was carried out in towns in the interior of the country, such as Mar del Plata, Tandil or Rosario, informed the president of the Argentine Pharmaceutical Confederation (Cofa), Isabel Reinoso.
“On Friday the distribution to drugstores began and on Saturday it began to reach the first pharmacies in the interior (Mar del Plata, Tandil, Bahía Blanca, Rosario) and today the distribution to the drugstores that supply Greater Buenos Aires and CABA is completed. “, Reinoso said in an interview with the television signal TN.
And continued: “As soon as they arrive at the pharmacy they will be available since the pharmacies already have the computer system installed to be able to dispense the self-assessment tests”.
The owner of the Cofa described that once the dispensation has been made, the pharmacist takes the data (name and surname, DNI, location and contact telephone number), and that information is printed on the pharmacy’s computer along with a QR code that the customer you can read from your cell phone camera.
“Four buttons will be displayed there: positive, negative, invalid or I’ll do it later. The person chooses the corresponding option and that information goes directly to the pharmacy,” Reinoso said, noting that “if you don’t want to do it That way, conventional methods will be available, such as notifying by phone, by mail, in person”.
He also recalled that “These are rapid antigen tests and what they determine is whether there is the presence of virus proteins; if it is positive, the margin of error is very low”.
In reference to when to use it, he indicated that “if a person finds out that it is close contact, it is recommended that they wait a period of three or four days from when they saw the confirmed case to wait for the viral load to rise and the virus can be detected” .
The self-test is indicated for patients over 60 years of age, with comorbidities, pregnant women, etc.
In relation to the procedure, the head of Cofa indicated that “the first thing is to wash your hands and place the cassette in a clean place; then you have to pass the swab four or five times in the nostril (no more than 2 centimeters), it does not It is necessary to reach the bottom of the nose because they are nasal tests, not nasopharyngeal”.
In addition, he indicated that the test that began to be distributed today can also be done by saliva: “For this it is important to take into account some aspects such as not having brushed your teeth or eaten food or drink, so the ideal is to do it in the morning. “, he finished.
During January, the National Administration of Medicines, Food and Medical Technology (Anmat) approved the use of six self-assessment tests.
Once the test purchaser’s response is obtained, the pharmacy will report the result to the National Health Surveillance System.
