Avian flu: Diagnostics quality on the frontline
This article was originally published in Clinica
The need for speed in the initial investigation of a possible flu outbreak in humans requires that laboratory testing be performed ideally within 48 hours of the detection of a cluster of cases. So says the World Health Organization in an updated "draft protocol for rapid response and containment", citing RT-PCR (reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction) as an example of the technology required.
Further testing to verify or identify the causative agent must then follow, by sending samples to one of the WHO's network of H5 reference laboratories. But the importance of the quality of the initial testing is underlined by the warning that actions to contain the outbreak must not await confirmatory testing.
The WHO notes that while specific reference is often made to the H5N1 virus in the new protocol, the guidelines apply to the emergence of any virus with pandemic potential. "Scientists are well aware that the next pandemic might be caused by a different influenza virus," says the WHO. This highlights the importance of the diagnostic elements of the overall pandemic control process, notably through the detailed analysis that the WHO's network of collaborating laboratories perform on samples after diagnostic confirmation.
The recommendations reflect the latest consensus from three international meetings of scientific and healthcare experts, held between December 2005 and early March 2006. They were published on March 17.