BD Diagnostics has announced that the company has received clearance from the US FDA to market the BD GeneOhm Cdiff molecular assay. This assay is used for the rapid detection of the Toxin B gene found in toxigenic Clostridium difficile, the bacterial pathogen responsible for Clostridium difficile infection (CDI). This molecular assay is the first CDI molecular diagnostic that offers sensitivity, simplicity and speed in one test procedure. “The BD GeneOhm Cdiff assay provides a simple and rapid stool test with excellent sensitivity and specificity that allows same-day identification of toxigenic Clostridium difficile,” said Thomas Davis, M.D., Ph.D., Professor, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the Indiana University School of Medicine, and Pathologist with Wishard Health Services and Clarian Health laboratories. “This test should improve patient care because it gives labs the option of a single assay that will markedly reduce or even eliminate the need for multiple screening and confirmatory tests. This would speed up reporting and help avoid unnecessary antibiotic use.” “CDI poses a significant challenge for healthcare facilities around the world,” said Jamie Condie, Vice President and General Manager, BD Diagnostics - Molecular Diagnostics. “The introduction of the BD GeneOhm Cdiff assay demonstrates BD’s ongoing commitment to develop a broad range of products to help prevent HAIs. BD provides molecular tests for key pathogens associated with HAIs, including Staphylococcus aureus, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, vancomycin-resistant enterococci, and now Clostridium difficile.” Cleared for the identification of toxigenic Clostridium difficile directly from stool specimens, the BD GeneOhm Cdiff assay targets the Toxin B gene, found in virtually all toxigenic Clostridium difficile strains, including the emerging BI/NAP1/027 epidemic strain. This CDI molecular assay that combines high sensitivity and specificity provides definitive test results in less than two hours. This new test may facilitate earlier and more appropriate antibiotic treatment of CDI patients. It may also lead to earlier implementation of infection control interventions that help prevent the transmission of the pathogen to other patients.