A PCR test that can detect and differentiate between SARS-CoV-2, the flu, and RSV finally exists.
On Monday (May 16), the FDA authorized the Labcorp Seasonal Respiratory Virus RT-PCR DTC Test for people to use at home without needing a prescription.
The tests are for those feeling sick with respiratory viral symptoms and can identify “influenza A and B, commonly known as the flu, respiratory syncytial virus, commonly known as RSV, along with SARS-CoV-2,” the FDA said.
“While the FDA has now authorized many COVID-19 tests without a prescription, this is the first test authorized for flu and RSV, along with COVID-19, where an individual can self-identify their need for a test, order it, collect their sample and send it to the lab for testing, without consulting a health care professional,” Dr. Jeff Shuren, the director of the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health, said in a statement.
Kary Mullis – The inventor of PCR, Nobel Prize winner: