The VACUETTE® VST sample tube keeps the virus securely enclosed

PCR tests are an important part of the strategy to combat the coronavirus pandemic. Now that rapid antigen tests are no longer accepted for COVID passes, testing using the PCR method has become more important than ever before. Every day, thousands of PCR tests are analysed throughout Austria. In Vienna alone, the average is around 400,000 tests per day. Since September of this year, Greiner Bio-One has been supplying a key component of the COVID test kit from LEAD Horizon: the VACUETTE® VST tube for stabilising the saliva sample and transporting it safely to the test laboratory.

This product is a 3 ml PET tube with an easy-open PREMIUM screw cap for safe sample handling. For the further processing of the saliva sample in the laboratory, a standardised non-vacuum 13/100 tube with round bottom was selected from the current Greiner Bio-One VACUETTE^® line. The sterile product contains a phosphate-buffered saline solution. It stabilises the sample material when cooled (4°C) for a period of (up to) 72 hours. The tube is, of course, CE-labelled.

The simple handling of the test kit is described clearly by the "Alles gurgelt" web app and is easy to understand at first glance. After gargling the saline solution for one minute, the sample is transferred into the VACUETTE^® VST tube using the transfer tube. Thanks to the wider diameter of the VST tube, this step can be performed without any problems. The tube is then tightly sealed with the PREMIUM screw cap and placed in the transport bag. The PCR samples are analysed within 24 hours in the COVID-19 laboratory of Lifebrain, and the test result is sent to the tested person by email after a maximum of 28 to 30 hours (outside Vienna: a maximum of 48 hours) after submission of the sample. The PCR test kits from LEAD Horizon are currently in use in Vienna and Upper Austria.

With the VST tube, Greiner Bio-One is making an important contribution to tackling the current aggravated situation in the pandemic and thereby to ensuring good health in our country.