Cepheid Receives FDA Clearance for First On-Demand Diagnostic Test for Life-Threatening MRSA and Staphylococcus aureus From Patient Positive Bloo...(s. The samestudy states that care of sep...)

Typically, physicians will order a set of blood culture bottles drawn from patients presenting with symptoms of systemic infections. Positive cultures can appear in as little as 6-24 hours, but then require further testing to identify the specific organism causing the infection. Currently, those additional tests -- most notably to determine if the organism is methicillin-resistant or methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus -- are done via slower culture testing methods.

"Same day diagnostic results for blood culture bottles growing gram-positive cocci will empower physicians to begin targeted therapy in septic patients far sooner than current culture-based methods," said Dr. Ellen Jo Baron, Director of Clinical Microbiology Laboratories for Stanford University Hospital and Director of Medical Affairs at Cepheid. "These results, delivered 24-48 hours sooner, can potentially improve antibiotic stewardship and provide patients with the best, most effective therapeutic regimen."

According to a Critical Care Medicine study, hospital costs associated with severe sepsis patients are 141 percent higher than those of other patients. The study also found that 72 percent of cases are under-reimbursed, and severe sepsis patients are five times as likely to be outliers.

Xpert MRSA/SA BC delivers on-demand test results to assist physicians in modifying patient treatment plans with targeted therapy to improve patient management, increase antimicrobial stewardship, and control treatment costs associated with the care of sepsis patients.

About the GeneXpert(R) System Molecular Diagnostic Platform

The GeneXpert(R) System is a closed, self-contained, fully-integrated and automated platform that represents a paradigm shift in the automation of molecular analysis, producing accurate r
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