FOI Ref: FOI/2021/3116
You asked
How many amplification cycles have been used on the UK PCR & RT-PCR Tests from the start of the Covid Pandemic?
I would also like to know the historical values including the dates they pertain to.
We said
Thank you for your request.
The COVID-19 Infection Survey (CIS) is a household survey. Our statistics refer to the number of current COVID-19 infections within the population living in private residential households. We exclude those in hospitals, care homes and/or other communal establishments. In communal establishments, rates of COVID-19 infection are likely to be different.
The CIS is not responsible for setting the threshold of the number of amplification cycles (Ct values) used on RT-PCR tests to determine a positive test, therefore this information is not held.
You may be interested in the technical dataset accompanying our latest bulletin, where you can find the percentage of COVID-19 positive cases by gene pattern and Ct value for each of the four UK nations on tab 1a.
Further information and an overview of data about the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic from the Office for National Statistic (ONS) and other sources can be found in our Coronavirus (COVID-19) latest insights tool.