Clinical Decision Making in the Emergency Department Setting using Rapid PCR: Results of the CLADE Study Group

Seasonal influenza is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality contributing to>200,000 hospitalizations and up to 50,000 deaths annually in the United States alone [1]. Diagnostics are frequently challenged by circulating influenza strains and debates over the ideal test(s) for suspected influenza cases are long standing [2,3]. Balancing needs for rapid, sensitive, cost-effective testing is difficult. Reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) is acknowledged as gold-standard testing for influenza because many enzyme immune-assays (EIA) lack sensitivity [2].

Source: Journal of Clinical Virology - February 21, 2018 Category: Virology Authors: Glen T. Hansen, Johanna Moore, Emily Herding, Tami Gooch, Diane Hirigoyen, Kevan Hanson, Marcia Deike Source Type: research