Aegis Sciences Corporation, a leading healthcare company that provides clinically innovative medication compliance testing and consulting services to providers, has launched a combined test for SARS-CoV-2 and influenza A/B virus for individuals suspected of respiratory viral infection consistent with COVID-19.

Reducing the spread of respiratory illnesses, like flu, this fall and winter are more important than ever due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Since symptoms of respiratory viral infection due to SARS-CoV-2 and influenza can be similar, a multiplex assay serves as a single test to diagnose infection caused by one of three viruses.

Testing for all three viruses at the same time will allow for more efficient testing and diagnosis to help reduce the spread of these viruses in the community and improve patient care.

The combination COVID-19 + FLU A/B test is a reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) molecular test intended for the simultaneous qualitative detection and differentiation of SARS-CoV-2, influenza A virus, and/or influenza B virus.

Respiratory specimens are collected via nasopharyngeal, oropharyngeal, nasal mid-turbinate, or anterior nares from individuals suspected of respiratory viral infection consistent with COVID-19.

“Our validated testing method for SARS-CoV-2 and influenza A/B has the sensitivity to distinguish between these respiratory viruses and the specificity to detect the most common influenza virus subtypes causing illness during the flu season with no observed cross-reactivity with other human respiratory viruses, bacteria, and yeast,” said Dr. Cyndi Clark, Aegis’s Biopharma Laboratory Manager.

“With the flu season looming and COVID-19 surging, laboratory testing that can distinguish between SARS-CoV-2 and influenza virus infections and identify coinfection will be critical to patient care and public health response,” said Dr. Frank Basile, CEO of Aegis Sciences Corporation. “From the beginning, we have been committed to a 24-hour turnaround time for test results. Producing test results that are fast and accurate is even more critical as we enter this season.”

Aegis has the capacity to perform 60,000 tests per day within a targeted 24-hour turnaround time. Aegis will report testing results to State Departments of Health and to the CDC in accordance with applicable public health emergency response requirements. Aegis is accredited for all testing it performs under its College of American Pathologists (CAP) accreditation #8853197. 

About Aegis Sciences Corporation
Founded in 1990, Aegis Sciences Corporation is a laboratory sciences company based in Nashville, Tenn., that provides science-driven testing and consulting services for clients such as healthcare providers, pharmaceutical companies, professional and amateur sports organizations, leading college and university athletic programs, Fortune 500 corporations, and government agencies throughout the United States.