Detect and Characterize the Pathogen

It is important to identify and characterize the pathogen causing a respiratory disease outbreak in order to ensure effective clinical management and implementation of appropriate infection control measures. Being able to test patients for the pathogen also helps investigators understand when the outbreak is due to that specific pathogen is over. A number of diagnostic tests are available through health department laboratories (contact your health department to confirm which tests are available) or commercially. These include a variety of serology, culture, and rapid diagnostic tests, such as Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR), and can look for either single or multiple pathogens. It is important to use tests with validated reagents.

See Request CDC Assistance for information on the diagnostic tests and methods used at CDC to detect and characterize pathogens.