The highly contagious nature of COVID-19 necessitated the ability to rapidly identify and quarantine infected individuals. While the need for widespread testing for COVID-19 was clear, it also quickly became apparent that each method of testing had its own set of benefits and drawbacks.

Tests performed in the lab setting typically use a molecular technique, such as PCR, that uses amplification prior to detecting the presence of the virus in the sample. This technique can detect very low levels of the virus, producing a highly sensitive result; however, patients typically wait 24 hours or more to receive these results.

While rapid home tests can give you results in 15 minutes, rather than a day or more, they are typically less accurate, as they rely on antigens or antibodies. But there is no amplification process in an antigen or antibody test, meaning they are significantly less sensitive. This testing technique gives you results faster than molecular, but the patient’s viral load needs to be high enough to meet the limit of detection, creating a delay from exposure to a positive result. The benefit of getting a result in 15 minutes at home is significantly reduced if that result cannot be relied upon.

The market is exploring multitarget tests that can diagnose different viruses with similar symptoms. The key to its success will be building the testing devices in such a way that they can easily adapt over time as additional assays are added. This approach not only allows manufacturers to quickly react when a new virus emerges but also removes the need for multiple rounds of regulatory approvals: The multifunction test system will go to the Federal Drug Administration as a single review package, rather than each individual new assay requiring its own instrument approval.

One opportunity for multi-pathogen testing is in clinical settings like doctor offices or walk-in clinics. The benefit is two-fold: These types of medical facilities are often space-constrained, making a single, multifunctional, printer-sized device an attractive option. It is also helpful to time-constrained clinical staff who will only need to learn and use a single device, rather than remembering the order of operations on dozens.

This approach is also uniquely beneficial in the sexual health space. Offering a multi-disease STD tester at the point of care would provide space and convenience benefits. It would also allow physicians to diagnose and prescribe treatment in a single visit, rather than requiring a follow-up. This is of particular importance in the sexual health space where studies suggest up to half of patients who are notified of a positive test result may not return for treatment.

Having a single test that can return meaningful results for multiple ailments is an exciting concept. It has the potential to play a critical preventative role in the spread of infection and in optimizing daily management of a variety of chronic conditions. It can even help in optimizing everyday health, like understanding your body’s unique vitamin and mineral needs over time, creating opportunities to turn testing toward maintaining good health rather than just monitoring illness.

Multi-pathogen testing can also reduce the burden on overbooked clinics and other points of care and decrease the volume of samples to be processed by labs. It will also play an enormous role in population health, giving people rapid answers to whether they are sick and should stay home or healthy but need to take an allergy pill.

Additionally, the barriers to testing have come down. While someone may think twice about taking the time to make an appointment and be tested at a nearby point of care, there’s hardly any reason not to do a quick swab at home to confirm you’re healthy before attending your morning yoga class or an indoor family gathering.