Washington ? The Food and Drug Administration said Tuesday it has authorized the emergency use of a swine flu test for U.S. troops overseas, allowing the military to speed up diagnoses and treatment of a virus that could cause widespread infections again this fall.

The FDA emergency authorization lets the Defense Department distribute the swine flu test to its qualified laboratories that have the right equipment and personnel to perform and interpret test results. The FDA authorized the swine flu diagnostic test for the public in April.

The authorization allows for the use of unapproved medical products or unapproved uses of approved medical products during a public health emergency, the FDA said.

The FDA said the test will help to speed up diagnosis of H1N1 infections so that deployed troops can quickly begin treatment.