Is this the method that will make antigen testing more accurate?
Antigen tests are the masks of 2020. They are found in every home and in increasing use.
The problem - scientists warn that they are not accurate enough, but some of them have a method to make them and it is really simple
Walla!
health
03/01/2022
Monday, 03 January 2022, 07:50 Updated: 07:54
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In the video: Extraordinary loads in corona testing complexes around the country (Photo: Reuven Castro, Yoav Itiel and Shani Frumkin)
If in the delta wave the antigen tests just came into our lives, in the current wave the variant omicron are absolutely necessary equipment in every home.
The problem - more and more experts are claiming that home tests are inaccurate when it comes to the new variant.
Now some experts offer an efficient and easy way to make them more accurate - insert the pen into the nose as requested, but also into the throat.
Most of the rapid antigen tests available today are only approved to collect a nasal sample, but infectious disease specialists are not surprised to hear that people who were found negative after a nose test were found positive after a pcr test that also includes the throat.
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To the full article
Although fast test kit manufacturers recommend using tests only as directed (in other words, only performing a nose test), growing evidence suggests that it may be worthwhile to pass the stick down your throat as well.
The general consensus among doctors is that this is not a bad idea - especially if you have a sore throat.
According to Andrew Neumar, an epidemiologist at the University of California at Irvine, who was interviewed by the Huffington Post, respiratory viruses like SARS-CoV-2 can infect all parts of our airways, which is basically anything that gets in and out of your body - including the nose, throat, mouth, Trachea and lungs.
Insert not only into the nose.
A boy does a home antigen test (Photo: Reuven Castro)
Although the nose and throat are both part of the upper respiratory tract and are tightly connected, there may be some differences in the amount of virus in the nose compared to the throat. Why this happens is unclear, but Neumar said it was probably due to a combination of viral factors, such as where and how the virus replicates, in addition to human factors.
Indeed, a growing body of evidence suggests that the omicron variant is more likely to infect the throat than the lungs, which scientists believe may explain why it is more contagious but less deadly than other versions of the virus. "In fact, it seems to be more capable of infecting the upper respiratory tract - cells in the throat. So it will multiply in cells there more easily than in cells deep in the lungs. It's really preliminary but studies point in the same direction," Dean Dean Philly, a professor of virology at the university College London.
In practice, the scientists explain that if the virus produces more cells in the throat, it makes it more accessible, which will help explain the rapid spread of omicron.
A virus that manages to infect lung tissue, however, may be more dangerous but less contagious.
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"Good chance"
And what do the experts in the country say? "In general, it is recommended to use the kits according to the manufacturer's instructions," explains Dr. Ella Skalen from Tel Aviv University. "When you take a sample from both the
pharynx
and the nose, there is sometimes a better chance of detecting such viruses."
The upper part includes the openings and passages through which air flows to the lungs. These airways include the nose, mouth and throat. Based on data from several studies, the infection profile of the omicron variant is different from that of previous variants that may affect the test results currently in use.
A South African study (before peer review) showed that the sensitivity of the PCR test to identify the omicron variant increased when the area from which the sample was taken was the throat (compared to the sample from the nose).
Based on these findings, the researchers argued that for the identification of the omicron variant, a nasal sample is less effective and therefore consideration should be given to switching to a throat sample.
However, this study did not examine the effectiveness of detection using test antigen, so there is no data yet that can determine with certainty the improvement in the sensitivity of the test antigen case the sample is obtained by the throat. "
Still, he says there is a certain logic to sample the throat and the nose to raise Sensitivity of the test "In any case, it is advisable to perform a PCR test in order to obtain a more accurate answer than that obtained using the antigen test kit."
Many do not do the home test properly.
Antigen test (Photo: ShutterStock)
Another reason for the inaccuracy, or that it is also better to check the throat is the fact that many do not perform the tests properly and in order to get an accurate result one has to push the stick deep into the sinuses of the nose.
Many viruses and bacteria drip from the nose to the throat.
They also rise from the lungs to the throat from a cough.
This is why if there is a sore throat it is also advisable to check it out.
As mentioned, antigen tests are designed to test only a sample from the nose, but given the evidence of their inaccuracy, and given the presence of various viruses in the respiratory, nasal, and throat systems, this seems like a calculated move worth noting.
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