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This is an antibody test which will only be positive days after the onset of symptoms. This isn't really what your Twitter link says. That links says: "Both Ig
by joe_the_user 7y ago
This is an antibody test which will only be positive days after the onset of symptoms.
This isn't really what your Twitter link says. That links says: "Both IgM & IgG (those are two different kinds of antibodies, with IgA being a third) were low or undetectable at day 0, but increased by day 5 in nearly all patients (N=16)"
-- Reports strongly indicate there are many infected people who are asymptomatic after five days.
Which is to say, this test could be extremely useful if applied widely and systematically to many people; food service workers, health care workers and so-forth.
Currently the virus test has a week turn around time. So both tests effectively find people with a week's exposure.
- nosuchthing 7y agoTurn around time is mostly due to shipping samples to outside labs, in addition to outside labs lacking automation.
- joe_the_user 7y agoBut that doesn't change the current situation. Even you could change that, just cost would make this approach very useful.
- saym 7y agoDoes "N=16" mean they've approved this test after such limited testing? I think my high school stats class told me not to trust studies where N < 30.
- Bnshsysjab 7y agoI would be told off if I coded with magic global variables and is why I find math and bio frustrating. Care to explain the purpose of N?
- 411111111111111 7y agoIts the number of people they used to test.
- __blockcipher__ 7y agoI think the acceptable value for N depends on the size of the effect being studied. For example if it’s a massive effect, maybe 10 people is sufficient, but if it’s tiny enough to get swallowed up in statistical noise until you have 1000, then you need N >= 1000
- pas 7y agoIs this test able to detect that someone is infected before they start to infect others?
- DanBC 7y agoNo. This test tells us that you had covid-19 in the past and recovered from it.