Comprehensive Viral Panels for Respiratory Illnesses

Understanding the debate around obtaining comprehensive viral panels for patients with suspected respiratory viral illnesses, it is found that these panels can test for a large number of viruses, ranging from 8 to over 20, leading to significant costs of $600 to $1300. Despite the temptation to use these panels for multiple answers, their overuse has been studied in pediatric respiratory illnesses like bronchiolitis, with rates as high as 50% of children receiving unnecessary tests, conflicting with guidelines from medical societies.