Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, McMaster University, and Hamilton Regional Laboratory Medicine Program, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
Mol Diagn Ther. 2010 Aug 1;14(4):205-14. doi: 10.1007/BF03256375.
Rapid antigen testing for influenza has been both maligned and revered since its conception. Microbiologists have long lamented the lack of sensitivity of commercial rapid influenza detection tests (RIDTs), whereas many clinicians have eschewed their utility by emphasizing the value of definitely diagnosing influenza at the patient's bedside. RIDTs, although quick and easy to perform, are widely accepted as being less sensitive than traditional culture techniques and newer molecular methods, including reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Moreover, the performance characteristics of RIDTs vary widely, and their applications as clinical diagnostic tools are not well understood. In contrast, traditional techniques are time consuming and require significant expertise to perform. Often, the delay in diagnosing influenza through these methods has little impact on patient care. The benefits of achieving a diagnosis of influenza at the point of care are numerous and include increased access to appropriate antivirals, appropriate patient cohorting for infection control purposes, and better resource utilization. Therefore, it behooves the microbiology community to communicate these issues to clinicians and to work to improve the sensitivity of RIDTs.
自问世以来，快速抗原检测流感一直备受争议。微生物学家长期以来一直对商业快速流感检测试验（RIDTs）缺乏敏感性感到遗憾，而许多临床医生则通过强调在患者床边明确诊断流感的价值来避免使用RIDTs。RIDTs 虽然快速简便，但被广泛认为不如传统的培养技术和更新的分子方法（包括逆转录聚合酶链反应（RT-PCR））敏感。此外，RIDTs 的性能特征差异很大，其作为临床诊断工具的应用尚未得到很好的理解。相比之下，传统技术耗时且需要专业知识才能进行。通常，通过这些方法诊断流感的延迟对患者护理的影响很小。在护理点进行流感诊断的好处很多，包括增加获得适当抗病毒药物的机会、为感染控制目的对患者进行适当分组以及更好地利用资源。因此，微生物学界有责任向临床医生传达这些问题，并努力提高 RIDTs 的敏感性。
