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Coronavirus testing

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philjo

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BBC radio news was reporting that Oxford University have developed a new Covid test that give results in 5 minutes so can be used in businesses and airports etc. As it is a medical device it will need approval and it is hoped that manufacturing can start in early 2021.
 
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102 fan

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I've been tested twice, both times because of hospital admissions for an unrelated illness. I've always wondered why it was necessary to put the swab so far up my nose and down my throat, seeing how a facecovering is supposed to help prevent transmission? Surely it should be everywhere in nose and throat?
 

adc82140

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I've been tested twice, both times because of hospital admissions for an unrelated illness. I've always wondered why it was necessary to put the swab so far up my nose and down my throat, seeing how a facecovering is supposed to help prevent transmission? Surely it should be everywhere in nose and throat?
It's an interesting argument. Potentially you could say that if you have enough virus to trigger a positive in a saliva test then you're contagious. A swab test means you have some virus DNA present, but says nothing about virus load or how contagious you are. Any thoughts?
 

Yew

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It's an interesting argument. Potentially you could say that if you have enough virus to trigger a positive in a saliva test then you're contagious. A swab test means you have some virus DNA present, but says nothing about virus load or how contagious you are. Any thoughts?
On first glance, it doesn't seem unreasonable. Though even if it is true, it seems sensible to have a more thorough test when in hospital, due to the concentration of vulnerable people.
 

102 fan

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On first glance, it doesn't seem unreasonable. Though even if it is true, it seems sensible to have a more thorough test when in hospital, due to the concentration of vulnerable people.

All tests are far up nose and at the back of the throat, to the point of gagging. It's not just in a hospital that the test is so invasive.
 

Yew

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All tests are far up nose and at the back of the throat, to the point of gagging. It's not just in a hospital that the test is so invasive.

I am aware, if you look back, we were discussing the practicalities of hypothetical saliva only testing being a better measure of infectiousness.
 

Bletchleyite

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All tests are far up nose and at the back of the throat, to the point of gagging. It's not just in a hospital that the test is so invasive.

When I did one on myself I went a long way through the nose as instructed. When I had one done at the test centre and about a day later at hospital on admission for the thing that wasn't COVID in the end, they hardly went far in at all.
 

102 fan

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When I did one on myself I went a long way through the nose as instructed. When I had one done at the test centre and about a day later at hospital on admission for the thing that wasn't COVID in the end, they hardly went far in at all.

Two different nurses applied the test as I described.
 

Journeyman

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Wife had been under the weather for a day or two over the weekend, but lost sense of smell and taste quite suddenly on Sunday evening, so she booked a test at the Edinburgh Airport drive through site on Monday morning. I drove her there because she wasn't feeling up to driving herself. It was very easy to book and everything was quick and efficient, but the place was a dystopian horror and I found it very disturbing.

Result - positive - arrived Tuesday at about 1am. I ordered test kits for the rest of us, myself and 2 adult kids (18 and 20). Arrived yesterday, posted in my nearest priority postbox today. Fully expecting 3 more positives because we're all ill.
 

102 fan

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I heard yesterday about a man who had the track and trace app on his phone. It duly said he had been near an affected person, and to get tested. So he arranged a test, but on arrival, saw there were a lot of people in front of him. After 30
mins he decided to leave and arrange another appointment. The next day he got an email stating he had tested positive!

Anybody else heard similar?
 

Cowley

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A member of staff at the care home my daughter works at tested positive for the virus today and my daughter worked with her yesterday so she’s booked in for a test tonight at 7.
If she had caught it on Wednesday though and isn’t showing any symptoms yet is it likely that it would show up does anyone know?
 

Arglwydd Golau

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A member of staff at the care home my daughter works at tested positive for the virus today and my daughter worked with her yesterday so she’s booked in for a test tonight at 7.
If she had caught it on Wednesday though and isn’t showing any symptoms yet is it likely that it would show up does anyone know?

It's difficult to say. My partner (a nurse) was working on a ward with Covid positive patients back in the early days of the pandemic. A number of staff tested positive at the time, but my partner worked all the way through that period, at times with those members of staff yet wasn't ill. (I should add that she was tested, but the result was 'lost') She never had any symptoms and later had an antibody test and nothing showed up. No idea why she wasn't affected.
 

Yew

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It's difficult to say. My partner (a nurse) was working on a ward with Covid positive patients back in the early days of the pandemic. A number of staff tested positive at the time, but my partner worked all the way through that period, at times with those members of staff yet wasn't ill. (I should add that she was tested, but the result was 'lost') She never had any symptoms and later had an antibody test and nothing showed up. No idea why she wasn't affected.
Antibody testing is fairly flawed, antibodies don't stick around long, it's T-cells that persist.
 

Arglwydd Golau

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Antibody testing is fairly flawed, antibodies don't stick around long, it's T-cells that persist.
Yep, realise that...just surprised that she didn't contract it earlier when about two-thirds of her colleagues did.
 

yorkie

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It's difficult to say. My partner (a nurse) was working on a ward with Covid positive patients back in the early days of the pandemic. A number of staff tested positive at the time, but my partner worked all the way through that period, at times with those members of staff yet wasn't ill. (I should add that she was tested, but the result was 'lost') She never had any symptoms and later had an antibody test and nothing showed up. No idea why she wasn't affected.
Many people have T-cell immunity.

Those who have mild, or no symptoms, do not appear to (need to) develop a (strong/detectable) antibody response, as T-cells do the job.

A strong antibody response tends to be a sign of a more severe illness.

However many of those in favour of lockdowns/restrictions do not like to admit this.
 

Bletchleyite

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However many of those in favour of lockdowns/restrictions do not like to admit this.

I would point out, though, that it is possible to oppose "let it rip" without disagreeing with the T-cell theory. I oppose "let it rip" on the grounds of NHS capacity, for example. I don't have an issue with letting it run at a level say 80% of NHS capacity if that would bring the right levels of immunity.
 

yorkie

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I do not think that a response to this needs to be at one extreme, or another.
 

Yew

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So, based on the WHO's recent estimate of an IFR of 0.23% and some cigarette packet maths, and the number of deaths that we've had, roughly 27% of the population. This is fairly concurrent with the combined facts of the 8% estimate, and the studies from sweden that suggest a 2:1 ratio on T cells to antibodies, giving a spread of 24% as a base level.


Given that things seem higher in London, I'd be interested to see what the numbers are there specifically.

I would point out, though, that it is possible to oppose "let it rip" without disagreeing with the T-cell theory. I oppose "let it rip" on the grounds of NHS capacity, for example. I don't have an issue with letting it run at a level say 80% of NHS capacity if that would bring the right levels of immunity.
I agree, but I do think that this caricature of "let it rip" is unhelpful for our discussions.
 

yorkie

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I agree, but I do think that this caricature of "let it rip" is unhelpful for our discussions.
which is why pro-lockdown people use that term!:lol:

A member of staff at the care home my daughter works at tested positive for the virus today and my daughter worked with her yesterday so she’s booked in for a test tonight at 7.
If she had caught it on Wednesday though and isn’t showing any symptoms yet is it likely that it would show up does anyone know?
are we supposed to get a test without symptoms now? Or does it depend on the work we do; it certainly make sense for a care home worker to get a test in these circumstances (though whether something makes sense or not is no indication over whether it's allowed in this day and age!)
 

yorkie

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In all seriousness, what term would you prefer was used?
It depends on what the proposal is! But this is straying away from testing. It's all semantics anyway as it's going to spread.

T-cells are a very important aspect of this pandemic but there is no easy way to test for them, and that allows people to spread misinformation unfortunately.
 

Cowley

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are we supposed to get a test without symptoms now? Or does it depend on the work we do; it certainly make sense for a care home worker to get a test in these circumstances (though whether something makes sense or not is no indication over whether it's allowed in this day and age!)
I’ve really no idea but I ended up taking her anyway. She was worried about taking it back into the home (she works with mid 20s age group learning disabilities, not the elderly). It was more for her peace of mind than anything because her managers don’t seem too worried despite one of her colleagues testing positive...
It was all pretty dystopian anyway, and we were the only people there. I’d like to recommend the Exeter testing centre for convenience and organisation though. Most impressive.
Probably the worst fairground ride I’ve ever been on but there was a part of me that still wanted to go around again. :)
 

Bikeman78

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I heard yesterday about a man who had the track and trace app on his phone. It duly said he had been near an affected person, and to get tested. So he arranged a test, but on arrival, saw there were a lot of people in front of him. After 30
mins he decided to leave and arrange another appointment. The next day he got an email stating he had tested positive!

Anybody else heard similar?
Yes, one of my colleagues told me yesterday about someone that had exactly the sequence of events described above. Are they literally making up the results now?
 

102 fan

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How to stop people downloading their App, and get those that do to delete!

BBC News - Coronavirus: Police get access to NHS Test and Trace self-isolation data
People in England who have been told to self-isolate through NHS Test and Trace could have their details shared with the police on a "case-by-case basis".
Forces will have access to information telling them if an individual has been told to self-isolate, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said.
But the British Medical Association said it was worried police involvement might put people off being tested.
In England there is a legal requirement to isolate after a positive test.
 
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robbeech

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Yes, one of my colleagues told me yesterday about someone that had exactly the sequence of events described above. Are they literally making up the results now?
I know someone who knew someone who told them that someone they know knew someone who had had this. (that is actually a fact, but serves as a nice example).
It turned out in the end that one of them was lying. Now i'm not suggesting for one minute that this sort of thing doesn't happen, but it is clear that sometimes stories like this are agenda fuelled rather than fact fuelled.

If we look at it from another angle, if someone books an appointment, do they "check in" when they arrive? I don't actually know how it works. If they do, but then have to wait and decide to leave the system may flag a result as lost if it cannot find one. Given this person is only usually supposed to get this test if they have symptoms, IF they cannot display NO RESULT then is it better to default to NEGATIVE where they'll go about their daily business and could infect others that might not be well enough to deal with it, or default to POSITIVE, thus reducing that risk.
 

DelayRepay

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How to stop people downloading their App, and get those that do to delete!

The app data won't be shared with the police as it's only on your phone. So this is actually a reason to use the app - if you use the manual contact tracing forms then your data could be shared with the police.

I think, however, that anyone who should be isolating but isn't, deserves everything they get. In my opinion they shouldn't be fined, they should be carted off to jail to complete their isolation period there.
 
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