Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD) announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted emergency use authorization (EUA) for a new, rapid antigen test that can detect SARS-CoV-2, influenza A and influenza B in a single test.
The BD Veritor System for Rapid Detection of SARS-CoV-2 & Flu A+B assay takes about 15 minutes to run on the BD Veritor Plus System and distinguishes between SARS-CoV-2, influenza A and influenza B, by providing definitive positive or negative individual digital display readouts for all three.
"Given that symptoms for COVID-19 and the flu are very similar, having the ability to run a rapid combination test to distinguish between these viral infections may help save time and resources," said Dave Hickey, president of Life Sciences for BD. "BD will continue to offer both individual tests for SARS-CoV-2 and influenza A+B, as well as the new combination tests, to give health care providers the option to run the test that is most appropriate for their patients."
BD plans to launch the new test this summer for the 2021 to 2022 flu season. The test is intended for individuals who are suspected by a healthcare provider of having COVID-19, influenza A or influenza B within six days of symptom onset. The test follows the same, simple workflow as other rapid tests on the BD Veritor Plus System with a result in about 15 minutes.
There are over 70,000 active BD Veritor Systems in use at hospitals, clinician offices, urgent care centers, nursing homes, retail pharmacies, schools, businesses and other testing locations in all 50 U.S. states. The BD Veritor System, which is slightly larger than a cell phone, has one-button functionality, workflow flexibility and ease-of-use make it an ideal solution for settings without laboratory personnel. It also offers customers real-time reporting capabilities through the optional BD Synapsys Informatics Solution, providing them with the ability to easily report data for disease monitoring and surveillance purposes.
