Low Sensitivity of Rapid Diagnostic Test for Influenza

The QuickVue Influenza A+B Test (Quidel) was used to test nasal swab specimens obtained from persons with influenza-like illness in 3 different populations. Compared with reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction, the test sensitivity was low for all populations (median, 27%; range, 19%-32%), whereas the specificity was high (median, 97%; range, 96%-99.6%).