Coronavirus antibody test: what is it and how does it work?
Laboratories across the world are working on the production of coronavirus antibody tests that quickly indicate if the tester has contracted the Covid-19 virus previously.
An antibody or serological test is used in the detection in ascertaining if an individual has contracted the Covid-19 virus previously and can also detect if the person in question has subsequently recovered.
The fifteen minute test involves a finger-prick procedure with the blood quickly analysed to determine if coronavirus antibodies have been generated thus gaining a higher level of immunity to future infection.
This test detects recovered COVID patients, who may’ve had a mild disease and are likely immune.
— Faheem Younus, MD (@FaheemYounus) April 2, 2020
Big benefits:
Test + people could:
- donate plasma for others
- serve on the frontlines
- stop fearing the virus as they’ve already beaten it!
https://t.co/EDs2dWoTcX
UK based daily The Telegraph maintain that the British government have purchased over three million of these finger-prick tests and with the tests set to be available for purchase in the future via Amazon and the Boots chain with an expected retail price of approximately seven euro.
Hancock advocates social distancing
Speaking ion the BBC last week, UK Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Matt Hancock told BBC’s Today Programme: “The antibody tests are important as scientists say they are more important later as we are trying to come out of the extraordinary social distancing measures, the lockdown, because it is on the way out that you then know how many people have the immunity. At the moment, the most important thing for getting out of this as soon as possible is for people to follow the social distancing rules.”
Some countries, such as South Korea and Germany, have successfully tested far more people than in other countries, these tests are in most cases the much slower saliva based swab tests.
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