The Advent of Box PCR Testing

ABSTRACT

Nicknamed "SARS Stock," the event celebrated the end of the severe acute respiratory syndrome 1 (SARS-CoV-1) outbreak2 But Grant Johnson, MLT, team leader of microbiology at The Hospital for Sick Children at the time, was not at the concert. [...]Health Canada approved several in early 2020.3 CJMLS spoke to Johnson and laboratory professionals at another Canadian hospital to learn how incorporating Cepheid's GeneXpert,a popular rapid PCR box testing platform, has affected the work of laboratory professionals and patient care and how they managed issues that arose with it during the COVID-19 pandemic. Available in various sizes ranging from two to 16 modules, the GeneXpert platform can process tests for different indications simultaneously, making "on-demand molecular testing available to everyone with unprecedented speed and ease of use," according to the company's marketing materials.3 Preparation time is about five to seven minutes, and results are available within about 50 minutes.4 For example, the Cepheid GeneXpert Xpert Xpress SARS-CoV-2 assay targets two genome regions on the virus, the envelope and the nucleocapsid. Test results for individual patients confirmed whether they needed to isolate to prevent infecting others or if it was safe for them to visit loved ones, such as those in long-term care facilities with a higher risk of severe disease and mortality from SARS-CoV-2 infection.