Findings from the first public COVID-19 temporary test centre in Hong Kong

Introduction:The Hospital Authority of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region established a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) temporary test centre at the AsiaWorld-Expo from March 2020 to April 2020, which allowed high-risk individuals to undergo early assessment of potential severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection.This study reviewed the characteristics and outcomes of individuals who attended the centre for COVID-19 testing.Methods: This retrospective cross-sectional study collected epidemiological and clinical data.The primary outcome was a positive or negative SARS-CoV-2 test result, according to reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction analyses of pooled nasopharyngeal and throat swabs collected at the centre.The relationships of clinical characteristics with SARS-CoV-2 positive test results were assessed by multivariable binary logistic regression.Results: Of 1258 attendees included in the analysis, 86 individuals tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 infection (positivity rate=6.84%;95% confidence interval [CI]=5.57%-8.37%).Of these 86 individuals, 40 (46.5%) were aged 15 to 24 years and 81 (94.2%) had a history of recent travel.Symptoms were reported by 86.0% and 96.3% of individuals with positive and negative test results, respectively.The clinical characteristics most strongly associated with a positive test result were anosmia (adjusted odds ratio [OR adj ]=8.30; 95% CI=1.