Abbott Launches 5-Minute Test Kit For COVID 19

Abbott Laboratories has launched a COVID-19 test kit that would be able to analyze a sample within 5 minutes. The company also claims that the testing kit is so small and portable that it can be used in any healthcare setting.
The company’s vice president of the research and development department stated that they would be able to conduct 50,000 tests per day starting from 1st April. This molecular test analyzes fragments of the coronavirus genome, which can be rapidly detected when present at high concentrations.
It has received emergency use authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, for using this kit by authorized laboratories and patient care settings.
The test is conducted after taking a swab from the nose or the back of the throat of the patient and then mixing it with a chemical solution that releases the RNA of the virus. The mixture is then inserted into an “ID Now system”, that has the technology to identify and amplify selected sequences of the virus genome.
A Pune based molecular diagnostic company had come up with the diagnostic kit for coronavirus testing. The kit named “Mylab Patho Detect Covid-19” qualitative PCR kit became the first one to receive commercial approval from the Indian FDA/Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO).
It also received a recommendation from the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR). This kit is based on reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) technology and will be able to study 1000 samples from large labs and 200 from smaller labs. The lab expects to produce one lakh test kits per week and then gradually increase the production to meet the testing demands.
Roche Diagnostics India Pvt Ltd has also received the license from the DCGI for its ‘Cobas SARS CoV-2’ diagnostic test kit, making it the first one to get permission to conduct coronavirus tests in India. The Cobas SARS CoV-2 assay is a real-time PCR molecular offering, certified by CE-IVD. The kit claims to test 4,128 samples in a day and has also received an emergency use authorization (EUA) from the US FDA.
Hence, the development of these testing kits will provide an opportunity for front-line caregivers to diagnose a lot of symptomatic/asymptomatic cases to close the gap with our testing strategy.
Sources
1. Verdict Medical Devices
2. Indian Express
3. Your Story
4. Bloomberg

Docplexus is the largest digital network of doctors in India & a trusted marketing partner of pharma & medical device companies. We empower our industry partners to meaningfully engage with the medical community through data-driven, evidence-based marketing & brand management solutions such as Infocenters, Mindset Analysis, KOL Webinars, Sponsored Medical Updates, Online CMEs & more.