The FDA said today is had approved the emergency use of a new test for the Zika virus. The test represents a breakthrough in that it will also detect infections by chikungunya and dengue, Previously, those viruses could only be detected with separate tests.
The new test was approved at the request of the CDC. It "will potentially allow CDC to more rapidly perform testing to detect acute Zika virus infection," the FDA said.
The test will be distributed to "qualified laboratories" in the Laboratory Response Network. which was created in 1999 to respond to bioterrorism. The test will not be available in U.S. hospitals or other primary care settings, the FDA said.
Zika has been linked to a neurological condition called microcephaly, in which the head of an infant is significantly smaller than normal.
The virus has been detected mostly in South America, Central America, Mexico and the Caribbean.