The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) yesterday authorized for emergency use the first COVID-19 test based on breath samples, a system that looks for chemical signatures of infection and can provide a result in about 3 minutes.The development comes as US COVID-19 cases are rising slightly in some areas, especially in the Northeast, amid Easter and spring break travel and as the proportion of more transmissible BA.2 subvariant infections rises.
The 7-day daily averages today are at 36,503 cases and 522 deaths, according to a Washington Post analysis.Quick testing method sidesteps biological materialsIn its announcement yesterday, the FDA said the device, from Texas-based InspectIR, is about the size of a piece of carry-on luggage and is designed for use in settings such as doctor's offices, hospitals, and testing sites.
Testing is done by qualified, trained operators under the supervision of licensed healthcare providers.The breathalyzer uses gas chromatography mass spectrometry to identify chemical mixtures and identify compounds linked to SARS-CoV-2 infection in exhaled breath.
A positive test is considered a presumptive positive, with results intended to be confirmed with polymerase chaine reaction (PCR) testing.