Basis of Presentation	6 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2011
Basis of Presentation [Abstract]
Basis of Presentation	Note 1. Basis of Presentation The accompanying unaudited consolidated financial statements of Quidel Corporation and its subsidiaries (the “Company”) have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the U.S. for interim financial information and with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Article 10 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by accounting principles generally accepted in the U.S. for complete financial statements. Certain reclassifications have been made to prior year amounts to conform to the current year presentation. In the opinion of management, all adjustments considered necessary for a fair presentation (consisting of normal recurring accruals) have been included. The information at June 30, 2011, and for the three and six months ended June 30, 2011 and 2010, is unaudited. Operating results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2011 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2011. For further information, refer to the Company’s consolidated financial statements and footnotes thereto for the year ended December 31, 2010 included in the Company’s 2010 Annual Report on Form 10-K. Subsequent events have been evaluated up to and including the date these financial statements were issued. For 2011 and 2010, the Company’s fiscal year will or has ended on January 1, 2012 and January 2, 2011, respectively. For 2011 and 2010, the Company’s second quarter ended on July 3, 2011 and July 4, 2010, respectively. For ease of reference, the calendar quarter end dates are used herein. The three and six month periods ended June 30, 2011 and 2010 both included 13 and 26 weeks, respectively.

Note 1. Basis of Presentation

The accompanying unaudited consolidated financial statements of Quidel Corporation and its subsidiaries (the “Company”) have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the U.S. for interim financial information and with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Article 10 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by accounting principles generally accepted in the U.S. for complete financial statements. Certain reclassifications have been made to prior year amounts to conform to the current year presentation. In the opinion of management, all adjustments considered necessary for a fair presentation (consisting of normal recurring accruals) have been included. The information at June 30, 2011, and for the three and six months ended June 30, 2011 and 2010, is unaudited. Operating results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2011 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2011. For further information, refer to the Company’s consolidated financial statements and footnotes thereto for the year ended December 31, 2010 included in the Company’s 2010 Annual Report on Form 10-K. Subsequent events have been evaluated up to and including the date these financial statements were issued.

For 2011 and 2010, the Company’s fiscal year will or has ended on January 1, 2012 and January 2, 2011, respectively. For 2011 and 2010, the Company’s second quarter ended on July 3, 2011 and July 4, 2010, respectively. For ease of reference, the calendar quarter end dates are used herein. The three and six month periods ended June 30, 2011 and 2010 both included 13 and 26 weeks, respectively.