Visby Medical’s STI diagnostic test now available at Urgent Care for Children
The handheld STI testing device makes its way into pediatric urgent care clinics across Alabama, Tennessee, and Louisiana.
Visby Medical has partnered with Urgent Care for Children (UC4C) to offer its Sexual Health Click Test for the detection of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in female patients aged 14 years and older at 11 locations. The palm-sized device uses PCR to target 3 of the most common STIs—chlamydia, gonorrhea, and trichomoniasis—and deliver results in under 30 minutes with 97% accuracy.1
Visby Medical Sexual Health Test, Courtesy of Visby Medical
The device received FDA approval in September 2021 and has the potential to become the new gold standard of care for diagnostic infectious disease testing.
“Having a test result at the same time a patient presents with an illness is a huge advantage,” said Gary Schoolnik, chief medical officer, Visby Medical, in an interview with Contemporary OB/GYN®. “First of all, and most obviously, whatever treatment you give is driven by an actual test result. It's not based on clinical judgment—it’s a rapid and PCR-level accurate result that you can believe and act on.”
“The other…huge advantage, from my perspective, is being able to engage in [a] ‘teachable moment,’ when a patient is most ready to engage in conversation. People really listen. If you say, ‘Gee, I think you might be sick, but I really don't know what you have.’ That teachable moment is not as intense, and it doesn't really have the same impact,” he said.
“The Sexual Health Click Test is a game-changer because STIs can cause serious complications, and they require communication with patient partners who may or may not be symptomatic who also need to be treated,” according to UC4C Founder and CEO, and practicing pediatrician, Allury Arora Lal, MD.2
UC4C is among the first pediatric care providers in the US to adopt the Visby test, now available at 11 locations, including Birmingham, Mobile, Vestavia, Trussville, Tuscaloosa, Madison, Huntsville, and Daphne in Alabama; Memphis and Knoxville in Tennessee; and in New Orleans, Louisiana.1
Without the hassle of additional equipment or instruments to interpret the rapid results, the Sexual Health Click Test simplifies the STI testing process from start to finish. With previously used testing methods, UC4C clinicians and patients would wait 24 to 48 hours to receive the results, thus jeopardizing valuable time for follow-up and risk education. With the Visby test, however, the entire STI testing process is conducted within the clinic and requires less than 15 seconds of hands-on time once the self-collected sample is obtained from the patient.1
“We are proud to support Urgent Care for Children in their efforts to address patients in need with accurate diagnostic results and proper treatment during that single visit,” Schoolnik said in a press release.2
References
- Sexual Health Test | Visby Medical. Visby Medical. Published 2019. Accessed April 4, 2022. https://www.visbymedical.com/sexual-health-test/
- Visby Medical. Urgent Care For Children Collaborates With Visby Medical To Provide New Gold Standard Diagnostic For Sexually Transmitted Infections. Visby Medical. Published March 25, 2022. Accessed March 31, 2022. https://www.visbymedical.com/news/urgent-care-for-children-collaborates-with-visby-medical-to-provide-new-gold-standard-diagnostic-for-sexually-transmitted-infections
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