British researchers are training dogs to recognize coronavirus by smell and to identify infected individuals, even if asymptomatic
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves himDogs could join the fight against COVID-19. From England, the experts of a specialized study center are evaluating the possibility of having the coronavirus recognized by man's best friends, through their powerful sense of smell, thus identifying the individual infected, even if asymptomatic. Just as it already happens for some types of tumors (dogs are able to smell them with 97% accuracy) or for Parkinson's.
The researchers of the Medical Detection Dogs, in collaboration with the prestigious London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) and the University of Durham, who have been working on this project in a practical way for a few weeks are convinced of this:
“We started training the dogs to be ready within six weeks to provide a quick, non-invasive diagnosis. Dogs can play an important role in the fight against the disease, ”reads a joint note.
COVID-19 research dogs would be trained in the same way as those dogs the study center has already trained to detect diseases such as cancer, Parkinson's and bacterial infections, by sniffing samples and indicating when they detect them. They are also able to spot slight changes in skin temperature, so they could potentially help find people who have a fever.
In summary, these dogs are made to smell viral samples, teaching them how to report its presence, even in asymptomatic people. And since dogs are also capable of sensing changes in human body temperature, they could be deployed in public spaces to try to identify potentially infected travelers.
“We are sure that dogs can detect Covid-19. We are now trying to find the safest way to "catch" the smell of the coronavirus from patients and submit it to dogs - explains Claire Guest, CEO and co-founder of Medical Detection Dogs -. The goal is for dogs to be able to control anyone, including asymptomatic people, in order to report them. It would be a fast, effective and non-invasive method, and would ensure that clinical trials are used only where they are really needed ".
“Our previous work has shown that dogs can detect the smells of people with malaria with extremely high accuracy, above WHO standards. We know that other respiratory diseases such as Covid-19 change our body odor, so there is a high chance that dogs will be able to detect this. This could revolutionize our response to the fight against coronavirus, ”concludes Professor James Logan, head of the Disease Control Department at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.
Fonte: Medical Detection Dogs
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