On Monday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved a new test for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus detection manufactured by Cepheid.
Cepheid's Xpert MRSA NxG test delivers actionable results in approximately one hour after a sample swab is taken.
MRSA has posed a significant threat to patients for more than 10 years. In that time period, new strains have emerged and often eluded detection. For this reason, Cepheid used MRSA strains collected from around the globe during the development of the new test.
"MRSA surveillance remains a critical infection prevention activity for healthcare facilities and one that is challenged by the continued evolution of target sequences within MRSA," said Fred Tenover, PhD, Cepheid's vice president for scientific affairs. "Fortunately, our global MRSA surveillance initiative has helped us keep ahead of the curve by alerting us to the emergence of novel strain types, enabling us to design a more comprehensive assay that takes into account major shifts, like the emergence of mecC, as well as more subtle changes in the SCCmec targets."
To learn more about MRSA in the healthcare setting, click here.
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