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What tests are there to detect the coronavirus? An infection with the coronavirus can be detected using various methods. Here are the most important: Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test. This test is considered the most reliable. Laboratories use highly sensitive, molecular test systems to verify the genetic makeup of the virus. According to the RKI, the pure test time is around 4 to 5 hours. However, one or two days can elapse from sampling to reporting the results, and more if large amounts of samples are available. If the infection was not long ago, swabs from the upper respiratory tract - i.e. from the throat or nose - are particularly suitable for the test. In later stages of the infection, secretions from the lower airways can also be examined. The detection of the coronavirus is also possible in the stool and less often in the blood. However, it is not yet clear how meaningful these findings are. Antigen test. This test should identify an acute infection with the coronavirus within a few minutes. The sample material is a throat swab. However, according to the RKI, the test methods available so far do not detect an infection as reliably as a PCR test. Virus growth. Virus cultivation from patient samples in cell culture systems plays a major role in research. They can help assess a patient's infectivity. However, virus cultivation requires specialist knowledge and specially equipped laboratories. Antibody test. The RKI considers a test for specific antibodies against the corona virus in the blood / serum to be sensible from an epidemiological point of view, because it allows additional knowledge to be gained about the actual spread of the virus in the population. It takes about one to two weeks between the first symptoms and the detection of specific antibodies. The antibodies can be detected both during the illness, after the symptoms have subsided, and after the virus has disappeared from the body. Imaging diagnostics. To supplement molecular diagnostics, radiological / imaging diagnostics of the respiratory tract should also be carried out in the case of severe disease. However, this can only be done in combination with a verification test.