Influenza is a seasonal disease that occurs annually, usually peaking in winter. It affects 5-10% of adults and 20-30% of children each year1. Seasonal illnesses can result in hospitalisation and death mainly among high-risk groups (the very young, elderly or chronically ill).
Influenza is characterised by sudden onset of symptoms including fever, runny nose, cough, headache and fatigue2. These symptoms overlap with many upper and lower respiratory infections caused by other bacterial and/or viral pathogens. This makes influenza diagnostics based on symptoms alone challenging for clinicians3.
Rapid Influenza Diagnostic Tests (RIDTs) can aid with the differentiation of Influenza type A from other Influenza-Like Illnesses (ILIs), which is essential for infection control and patient management.
Current influenza diagnostic tests commonly used are Point-of-Care (POC) rapid antigen tests and laboratory-based Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) tests4. Reliable negative Influenza A/B results support clinicians to consider other cases of illness like bacterial pathogens that require antibiotics.
Current immunoassay-based rapid tests for influenza have limited sensitivity. The results should therefore be interpreted with caution given the potential for false negatives5. It has left an unmet need for reliable, rapid influenza diagnostic tests that can accurately rule in or out influenza for patients to inform clinical management6.
POC testing that can reliably detect viral and/or bacterial pathogens would result in a variety of benefits for medical professionals.
Paediatric studies in particular also have shown decreased use of antibiotics and increased use of antivirals when influenza is diagnosed by rapid testing.
At Roche, we use a range of systems and assays in order to support medical professionals to reliably differentiate influenza from other ILIs. Our systems help to guide health care professionals to track the development of influenza diagnostics, evaluate changes in patients' condition over time, and determine accurate prognosis. All of our assays and systems are validated, which is critical to providing safe and consistent results whilst minimising the risk to patients.
The cobas® Liat® System is a fast, easy-to-use, compact PCR system designed for on-demand testing in point-of-care* settings such as clinics, pharmacies, and hospital or satellite laboratories.
Roche believes in offering healthcare professionals fast, effective and reliable diagnostic solutions in order to help fight the spread of influenza.
