Table 2.

Usefulness and limits of antigenic and serological tests in pediatric age.

Usefulness of Serological Tests	Usefulness of Antigen Testing
Evaluation of patients with a high clinical suspicion of COVID-19 when the molecular test is negative and at least two weeks have passed since the onset of symptoms Monitoring of multisystemic inflammatory syndrome in children Conducting serosurveillance studies Potential utility to track the course of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in the community	Use as a screening test in high-risk environments Use in contexts where a rapid response time is required Use in environments with reduced ability to perform RT-PCR tests for logistical or economic reasons, being less expensive and easier to use
Limits of Serological Tests	Limits of Antigen Testing
Poor diagnostic utility in acute phase of infection Inability to be used in determining immunological status due to lack of data on efficacy and duration of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody response	Overall sensitivity lower than RT-PCR-based tests Poor diagnostic utility after 5 days of onset of symptoms