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Public health doctors are ones who care for you but whom you never see.
They have just done so. There now is a fast influenza test which will enable public health officials to identify seasonal and avian (bird) flu patterns quickly.
Were there to be a pandemic, which refers to how many cases there are, knowing the type of flu which is in circulation will make it possible for schools, employers and governments to take action to limit the spread.
“The FDA has approved a fast influenza test along with an instrument that can be used together to quickly diagnose seasonal and avian flu.
“The test, Human Influenza Virus Real-Time RT-PCR Detection and Characterization Panel (rRT-PCR Flu Panel) and the diagnostic instrument, Applied Biosystems 7500 Fast Dx, can identify influenza virus in four hours and can test multiple samples concurrently.
“HHS Secretary Mike Levitt called the FDA approval of the test panel a “significant achievement for public health surveillance.”
“He said the rapid flu test would allow his department to better support laboratories on the front line of influenza testing here and overseas, adding that the fast assay would be especially important in “the early stages of a pandemic.”
Source: Medpage Today, October 2, 2009