The emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic spurred the development of nearly 300 diagnostics aimed at detecting exposure to the SARS-CoV-2 virus. 1 Many of these tests are available for use in multiple settings of care to identify the presence of virus, assess viral load, and determine whether a patient has been infected. As we near the end of the acute epidemiology phase of COVID-19 diagnostics, the next generation of diagnostics will address COVID-19 as an endemic disease.

On February 17, 2021, David Parker, PhD, Senior Vice President of Diagnostic
Solutions at Precision for Medicine presented a talk entitled Going Beyond Viral Detection: COVID-19 Diagnostics, at the 28th International Molecular Med Tri-Con Virtual Conference & Expo. As an end-to-end provider of development and commercialization services for advanced diagnostics and therapeutics, Precision for Medicine was honored to have been featured in this international forum.

With the emergence of viral variants and disease etiologies ranging from asymptomatic disease to rapid death, it has become clear that COVID-19 will be an ongoing concern long after the public health emergency comes to an end.

To effectively manage the systemic illness resulting from SARS-CoV-2 infection, appropriate diagnostic tools will be required. In his presentation, Dr. Parker explored the analytes and technologies driving this next phase of COVID-19 research and development.