More evidence reveals that dogs are skilled in sniffing COVID-19

Creating a fast and reliable test to detect Toronto-COVID-19 was costly and difficult, but a new study finds a cheap and effective solution for our nose, the dog. It suggests that it may be just below the nose.

Specially trained dogs are very effective in sniffing out the presence of COVID-19 in human sweat. New research, This supports existing evidence and suggests that dogs may play an important role in efforts to control the virus.

In a proof-of-concept study in France and Lebanon, six dogs were trained for a month to detect the odor of patients infected with the new coronavirus. Researchers took sweat samples from more than 170 people, about half of whom were COVID-19 positive, and tested whether dogs could distinguish between sick and healthy patients.

The animals with the least amount of training selected COVID-19 samples in over 76% of the time. Two dogs already trained to sniff cancer have perfect records in this study and have a 100% chance of detecting COVID-19 in the sample.

The result was detected within 1/10 second.

More research is underway Check if the dog can detect COVID-19 in saliva and urine samples.

When the idea of ​​testing a dog to sniff out COVID-19 first came up, it seemed ridiculous, said Dominique Granjan, a professor at the French National Veterinary School and author of the study. Told.

“First I said,’No way. I think it’s crazy. I haven’t seen any viral disease detected by dogs yet,” Grandjean told CTV News. “I was really surprised and surprised because I thought it was impossible.”

Health authorities across Canada have undergone more than 3.8 million rapid tests for COVID-19, but most jurisdictions treat COVID-19 with caution and validate their test results with lab-based tests. I am. Lab testing usually takes at least a day to process.

Compared to rapid testing, detection dogs can provide a rapid and potentially more accurate assessment of a patient’s condition. When a dog detects a patient’s COVID-19, it signals it using standard signs such as barking and lying down. The dog is then rewarded with treats and toys.

“It’s a kind of game for them,” Grandjean said. “I think it’s one of the best tests.”

Dogs are already trained to sniff out bombs, narcotics, and even certain types of cancer. In the case of COVID-19, dogs do not sniff out the virus itself.

“In fact, dogs don’t smell the virus. They do smell some of the molecules that the virus produces,” Grandjean said.

Other countries, including Australia, Belgium and Finland, have already begun to work virus detection dogs. One Russian airline uses a dog to sniff passengers before they board the plane.

According to Grand Jean, a dog can sniff about 400 people a day.

“If you have 1,000 dogs in a country, that means you can check 400,000 people a day,” she said.

Canadian researchers want to start training COVID-19 detection dogs here as well. Helene Carabin, a professor of epidemiology at the University of Montreal’s School of Veterinary Medicine, said dogs can be placed outside hospitals, elderly housings and other places to protect the elderly and immunocompromised.

“Vaccines are coming, but not fully covered for some time, and COVID needs to be monitored after vaccination, so this is generally great news for public health. I think, “she said.

At the moment, the biggest hurdle to implementing such a plan is lack of funding, Calabine said.

“In my opinion, detection dogs are the quickest test we have today,” she said. “You get the answer right away. You don’t have to wait. And this is a big advantage when you’re trying to do contact tracing.”

But with training, dogs can be an affordable, long-term solution, according to Eric Tronsey, a professor of pharmacology at the University of Montreal’s School of Veterinary Medicine.

“Millions of dollars are spent on this aspect where dogs can do it for thousands of dollars compared to the cost we do with PCR tests,” he said.

Dogs can make a big difference, especially in developing countries where medical capacity is already limited. In terms of payment, Grandjean said the study dog ​​was completely happy to accept the “and lots of contact” treats.