TESTING UPDATE
Good morning everyone.
I wanted to update everyone on what I learned from a webcast I was on last night put on by the ENT department at Thomas Jefferson University. Great series.
First some apparent GOOD NEWS. There does appear to be some flattening of the curve in some areas, including New York and my own Philly area. Philadelphia was slated to be the next “hotbed”, along with DC but our numbers seem to have slowed a bit in the last 3 days.
THIS DOES NOT MEAN THE DISEASE IS GOING AWAY! Just that the rate of new cases and new deaths is slowing. What this means practically, is that because there are fewer new cases, there will be fewer serious cases and fewer ICU beds and ventilators needed. But this does not mean that we are out of the woods or can go freely out into the world. People will continue to get sick for months to come.
Covid-19 is still out there. What it means is that what we are doing, i.e. isolating and social distancing, may be working. Stay vigilant.
TESTING. There are 2 types of tests. 1) Ones which measure the presence or absence of the virus in your secretions and 2) blood tests which measure whether you have made antibodies, molecules our bodies make to more easily identify a microbe in the future. You make antibodies to just about any foreign material your body encounters. Bacteria, viruses, foods, and of course, trees, grass, pets…
If you are feeling well, have a blood test and have positive antibodies, it simply means that you were exposed to the virus and your body may now be better able to combat it if encountered again. Maybe. It may take 5-7 days AFTER you start having symptoms for antibodies to show up so these are not great to do if you think you may have it or are just starting to have symptoms.
The SWAB tests look for the virus in your secretions. The most accurate source is mucus you cough up. The most common source is the nose or mouth. Specifically, the BACK of the nose (nasopharynx) is better than the back of the throat (oropharynx). These swabs have been shown to be as much as 30% false negative, meaning it shows you don’t have the virus when you do. If you get such a test, make sure they stick the swab into the back of the nose. Just rubbing it around the inside of your nose is much less sensitive.
By the way, I made a joking reference in an earlier post about a nasopharyngeal swab being easier than one for a urinary infection but it turns out that rectal swabs are the second most accurate after sputum. Don’t try this at home! 😜
Stay safe and be well.
AC😎✌️🌱❤🐖🏃🏻🧘🏻♂️🌎