Independent research by the Inselspital hospital and the University of Bern suggests the quick antigen tests miss many positive cases and performs much worse when compared to a PCR test.
The study shows it misses one in three positives.
The results are very different from the official guidance by the manufacturers.
It shows the antigen test will not detect the virus in carriers with a low viral load, which means those not showing any symptoms will likely test a false-negative.
The lead researcher, Michael Nagler, says the tests run the risk of making the pandemic worse at they give people a false sense of security.