Evaluation of the Performance of a New Chromatographic Assay BD Veritor System for Rapid Detection of Influenza A & B

Abstract

Background For early diagnosis and treatment of influenza, rapid influenza diagnostic tests are commonly used. We evaluated the performance of the BD Veritor System for Rapid Detection of Flu A＋ B (BD Veritor System; BD Diagnostics, USA) compared to multiplex real-time RT-PCR. Methods A total of 3,213 nasal and nasopharyngeal swab specimens in transport media from patients with influenza-like symptoms were tested with the BD Veritor System from December 2013 to April 2014. The sensitivity and specificity of 127 specimens were determined simultaneously using multiplex real-time RT- PCR with the AdvanSure RV real-time PCR (AdvanSure PCR; LG Life Sciences, Korea). Results Influenza viruses were detected in 41.3% (1,327/3,213) of all specimens tested using the BD Veritor System. Of the 127 specimens, 27 influenza A and 17 influenza B viruses were identified by the AvanSure PCR. The sensitivity and specificity of the BD Veritor System relative to the AdvanSure PCR was 85.2% and 99.0% for influenza A, and 58.8% and 99.1% for influenza B. Of the 190 specimens that tested negative using the BD Veritor System, the AdvanSure PCR detected influenza A and influenza B in 19 and 13 specimens, respectively. The mean threshold cycle (Ct) values of the antigen positive specimens were lower than those of the antigen negative specimens. Conclusion The BD Veritor System showed excellent specificity for both influenza types and good sensitivity for influenza A. However, the system was less sensitive for influenza B compared to multiplex re-al-time RT-PCR. For accurate diagnosis of false negative specimens, a molecular diagnostic test should be performed. The BD Veritor system could be a use-ful tool for screening and early diagnosis of influenza.