coronavirus

Stanford Develops Its Own Coronavirus Test

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A Stanford Health Care lab has developed its own in-house test for the coronavirus, according to a Stanford Medicine news release.

The test on Thursday was being used on patients at Stanford Health Care and Stanford Children's Health suspected of being infected with the virus, the release said. The COVID-19 coronavirus has killed more than 3,400 and affected more than 100,000 worldwide.

A team with Stanford's clinical virology lab began working on the test in January, and it spent a good part of February validating that the test met requirements to used clinically, Stanford Medicine said.

"The test successfully identified the presence of (the virus) in positive samples without cross-reacting with the seasonal coronaviruses or other common respiratory viruses, including influenza," said Dr. Benjamin Pinsky, a clinical virologist with Stanford.

The Stanford test is expected to turn around results in 12-24 hours, the release said.

For more information about the Stanford test and how it works, visit the Stanford Medicine News Center online.

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