Scientists from the USA and Ireland have developed a new blood test that can reliably predict the course of Covid 19 disease.
The
Corona *
infection
numbers rise
rapidly
during the
second wave *
in
Germany
.
Researchers from the
USA
and
Ireland
have developed a
blood test
that
can apparently predict
the course of
Covid 19 disease *
.
The
Dublin-Boston Score
could be a key component in the efficient allocation of resources.
Cambridge / Dublin - The second wave of the
coronavirus pandemic is
currently causing a rapid increase in the number of
infections
in
Germany
and large parts of Europe.
Scientists from
Harvard University
and the Irish University of Medicine and Health Sciences
RCSI
in
Dublin
have now developed a
blood test
that
can reliably predict
the progression of
Covid 19 disease
.
In the video: Corona news
Coronavirus: New blood test to reliably predict the course of Covid-19 disease
The American and Irish
researchers *
published their
study
in the journal
The Lancet
.
The newly developed
blood test
should be able to predict which patients will
suffer
a severe form of
Covid-19 *
, explain the authors of the work.
The application could help to
better recognize
severe courses
and to treat the affected patients accordingly.
The
scientists call the
result of their
blood test
the
Dublin-Boston Score
, based on the locations of their universities.
The level of the two molecules
interleukin-6 (IL-6)
and
interleukin-10 (IL-10)
in the blood is measured.
Both communicate with the
immune system
and control
inflammatory reactions
.
While IL-10 is anti-inflammatory, IL-6 is pro-inflammatory.
In a patient with a severe
disease course
of
Covid-19 *
, both values are increased.
Corona: blood tests on patients within the first four days
The
Dublin-Boston Score
can "accurately predict how severe an illness will be," say the scientists.
In order to be able to reliably say how severe the
illness will be
on day seven, the treating physicians must examine the patient's blood on the first four days.
The researchers have developed a point
system
that
uses
the ratio of the two
interleukins
to indicate how difficult the
disease
will be.
The increase of one point on the scale corresponds to a 5.6 increased probability of a more serious course.
“The Dublin-Boston score” can now accurately predict how severe Covid-19 infection will be on day seven, after measuring the patient's blood for the first four days, a study has found https://t.co/zGTdwkpPh8
- The Irish Times (@IrishTimes) October 14, 2020
Corona: Dublin-Boston Score as a "key component for the efficient distribution of resources"
"The Dublin-Boston Score is easy to calculate and can be used for all hospitalized Covid-19 patients," explains the lead author of the study and professor at RCSI University,
Gerry McElvaney
.
With a better prognosis of the
course of
the
disease
, one can better determine when which
care
is required for a patient.
The new
blood test
is "a key component for the efficient distribution of resources during the current pandemic," reports
McElvaney
.
This test is the first of its kind to offer medical decision-makers well-founded help, say the scientists.
(ph) * Merkur.de is part of the Ippen-Digital network
