Diagnostic accuracy of Xpert Xpress Flu/RSV for detection of Influenza and Respiratory syncytial virus: systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract Background: Xpert Xpress Flu/RSV assay is a fast and automated real-time nucleic acid amplification method, recently approved by the USA, Europe and China for detection and differentiation of influenza (Flu) A, Flu B and RSV virus from nasopharyngeal swabs. Nevertheless, there are still no systematic reviews and meta-analysis on the accuracy of identification of influenza virus by The Xpert Xpress Flu/RSV assay. The aim of this meta-analysis was to verify the accuracy of Xpert Xpress Flu/RSV for detecting Flu and RSV. Materials and Methods: The PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science databases were searched using the following keywords: Xpert Xpress Flu/RSV, Flu and RSV up to April 2019. Four researchers screened and extracted documents according to inclusion and exclusion criteria. The quality of original research was assessed using the QUADAS-2 guidelines. Meta-DiSc 1.4 software was used to analyze the sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio (+LR), negative likelihood ratio (-LR), diagnostic ratio (DOR), and Summary receiver operating characteristic curves (SROC). Deek’s funnel plot asymmetry test was used to evaluate the publication bias by Stata 12.0. Results: Nine studies with 22 fourfold tables were included in this meta-analysis. The sensitivity of Xpert Xpress Flu/RSV for detection of Flu A, Flu B, and RSV was 0.96, 0.98, 0.98; the specificity was 0.97, 0.99, 0.99; +LR was 80.65, 163.74, 237.35; -LR was 0.02 , 0.03, 0.05；DOR was 4806.90, 6266.78, 5254.41, respectively. AUC was all over 0.9. In addition, no publication bias for FluA, Flu B, and RSV was found. Conclusions: Compared to the traditional PCR approach, Xpert Xpress Flu/RSV resulted as a valuable method for Flu and RSV diagnosis in the clinic, offering high sensitivity and specificity. Nonetheless, further research is necessary to determine whether Xpert Xpress Flu/RSV can be used as a clinical diagnostic standard for the identification of Flu and RSV. Keywords: Xpert Xpress Flu/RSV; influenza virus; respiratory syncytial virus; PCR