In case anyone missed them. There’s been some interesting developments on the COVID Front
Are some foods super bitter to you? You might have lower COVID risk
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2021-05-foods-super-bitter-covid.html
supertasters in a new study experienced COVID-19 symptoms for only about five days, compared with an average 23 days among non-tasters.
British scientists say dogs could soon play large role in sniffing out COVID-19
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-05-24/covid-sniffer-dogs-uk-trial-coronavirus-detection/100162252
Key points:
Tau.Neutrino said:
the dogs outperforming lateral flow tests, which have an overall sensitivity of between 58 per cent and 77 per cent.
British scientists say dogs could soon play large role in sniffing out COVID-19
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-05-24/covid-sniffer-dogs-uk-trial-coronavirus-detection/100162252Key points:
- Scientists say the COVID-trained dogs could be used to screen several hundred people coming off a plane within half an hour
- During trials, the dogs could detect the virus with up to 94.3 per cent sensitivity
- However, experts caution the findings will need to be replicated in real-world situations
these are all diversionary tactics but sure, if instead they pull additional minds into STEM, great bring it on
SCIENCE said:
these are all diversionary tactics but sure, if instead they pull additional minds into STEM, great bring it on
Diversion from what, COVID or something else?
Tau.Neutrino said:
SCIENCE said:
these are all diversionary tactics but sure, if instead they pull additional minds into STEM, great bring it on
Diversion from what, COVID or something else?
From the important stuff that works: standard test tracé isolate, full quarantine without exception, masque, sanitation / hygiène.
SCIENCE said:
Tau.Neutrino said:
SCIENCE said:
these are all diversionary tactics but sure, if instead they pull additional minds into STEM, great bring it on
Diversion from what, COVID or something else?
From the important stuff that works: standard test tracé isolate, full quarantine without exception, masque, sanitation / hygiène.
Maybe you didn’t read what I posted
so Ill post the important bits
The dogs could detect the virus with up to 94.3 per cent sensitivity
The dogs outperforming lateral flow tests, which have an overall sensitivity of between 58 per cent and 77 per cent.
You want to casually dismiss those figures as a diversion?
Maybe you didnt read this bit
supertasters in a new study experienced COVID-19 symptoms for only about five days, compared with an average 23 days among non-tasters.
An average of 5 days compared with 23 days
I would be looking at that, Not casually dismissing it.
Tau.Neutrino said:
SCIENCE said:
Tau.Neutrino said:Diversion from what, COVID or something else?
From the important stuff that works: standard test tracé isolate, full quarantine without exception, masque, sanitation / hygiène.
Maybe you didn’t read what I posted
so Ill post the important bits
The dogs could detect the virus with up to 94.3 per cent sensitivity
The dogs outperforming lateral flow tests, which have an overall sensitivity of between 58 per cent and 77 per cent.
You want to casually dismiss those figures as a diversion?
Plus doggies are cool
Cymek said:
Tau.Neutrino said:
SCIENCE said:From the important stuff that works: standard test tracé isolate, full quarantine without exception, masque, sanitation / hygiène.
Maybe you didn’t read what I posted
so Ill post the important bits
The dogs could detect the virus with up to 94.3 per cent sensitivity
The dogs outperforming lateral flow tests, which have an overall sensitivity of between 58 per cent and 77 per cent.
You want to casually dismiss those figures as a diversion?
Plus doggies are cool
Doggies can sense up to a teaspoon of sugar in an olympic pool
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-6622613/Medical-alert-dogs-detect-TEASPOON-sugar-two-Olympic-sized-swimming-pools.html
Make that a teaspoon of sugar in two olympic pools.
Dogs’ sense of smell is so refined it could be measured in parts per trillion.
This is why we use Dogs to sniff out drugs.
Tau.Neutrino said:
Dogs’ sense of smell is so refined it could be measured in parts per trillion.This is why we use Dogs to sniff out drugs.
We already have Trained police dogs, so there is already a base from which to work from.
Tau.Neutrino said:
Tau.Neutrino said:
Dogs’ sense of smell is so refined it could be measured in parts per trillion.This is why we use Dogs to sniff out drugs.
We already have Trained police dogs, so there is already a base from which to work from.
It would be interesting to see how long it would take to get Covid Trained Dogs to work in airports, cruise ship terminals.
Tau.Neutrino said:
Tau.Neutrino said:
Dogs’ sense of smell is so refined it could be measured in parts per trillion.This is why we use Dogs to sniff out drugs.
We already have Trained police dogs, so there is already a base from which to work from.
Go Pugs!!
“Performance of Pugs, German Shepherds, and Greyhounds (Canis lupus familiaris) on an odor-discrimination task.”
>>Public opinion and the scientific literature alike reflect a widespread assumption that there are differences in behavior between dog breeds. Direct empirical behavioral assessments of such differences, however, are rare and have produced mixed results. One area where breed differences are often assumed is olfaction, where German Shepherds, hounds, and Labradors are commonly used for odor-detection work, whereas toy breeds and brachycephalic dogs, such as Pugs, are not. Choice of breed for scent detection work, however, may be driven more by historical choices than data. In this article we directly assessed the ability of German Shepherds, Pugs, and Greyhounds to acquire a simple olfactory discrimination, and their ability to maintain performance when the target odorant was diluted. Our results show that contrary to expectations, Pugs significantly outperformed the German Shepherds in acquiring the odor discrimination and maintaining performance when the odorant concentration was decreased. Nine of 10 Greyhounds did not complete acquisition training because they failed a motivation criterion. These results indicate that Pugs outperformed German Shepherds in the dimensions of olfaction assessed. Greyhounds showed a general failure to participate. Overall, our results highlight the importance of direct behavioral measurement of assumed behavioral breed differences.<<
https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2015-23483-001
Also (talking about the same research in a non journal way)
“Pugs Lead The Pack In Scent Detection Research”
>>While pugs are bred and beloved for their companionship qualities, their respiratory capabilities leave something to be desired — or so it would seem.
“They’re brachycephalic,” Hall said of the pugs, which means they have pushed-in faces. “They make those little snorting noises. So they snore a lot. They can have a lot of different sort of breathing problems. A lot of times they’re open-mouth breathers.”
So Hall set up a controlled scent detection experiment pitting the pug against the German shepherd in his lab. The dogs were trained to find anise-flavored samples in a box of pine shavings and the smart money was against the mouth breathing pugs.
“But then once they got up to actually doing the task, their mouths closed and they started breathing really hard through their nose,” Hall said. “It was a very clear switching on and off so they were making very active sniffing responses.”
“We had 10 dogs in each group and essentially nine out of the 10 pugs were at or above 80 percent accuracy and we did not see nearly the same amount for the German shepherds,” Hall said. “We had a couple of really good German shepherds, but by far as a population the German shepherds were not up to par as the pugs were on the task.”<<
I found that research because I noticed how well Hei Long seems to find scents. He really is quite surprising. And yes, he closes his mouth and really sniffs.
For Buffy
https://imgur.com/gallery/Ou122Jl
I saw a show on the teev a couple of years ago where they used dogs to “sniff out” cancers on the breaths of patients. One particular dog was picking the one cancerous sample from a group of four with 100% accuracy for weeks on end, until it’s success rate suddenly dropped to 25% (back to random chance) for no explicable reason.
When they work, they are extremely accurate, until they are not.
Dark Orange said:
I saw a show on the teev a couple of years ago where they used dogs to “sniff out” cancers on the breaths of patients. One particular dog was picking the one cancerous sample from a group of four with 100% accuracy for weeks on end, until it’s success rate suddenly dropped to 25% (back to random chance) for no explicable reason.
When they work, they are extremely accurate, until they are not.
I wonder if it was double-blind?
Dark Orange said:
I saw a show on the teev a couple of years ago where they used dogs to “sniff out” cancers on the breaths of patients. One particular dog was picking the one cancerous sample from a group of four with 100% accuracy for weeks on end, until it’s success rate suddenly dropped to 25% (back to random chance) for no explicable reason.
When they work, they are extremely accurate, until they are not.
Can you remember what country? I’ll see if I can find the research paper, if there is one. There are quite a few on dogs olfactory systems detecting cancer.
Witty Rejoinder said:
Dark Orange said:I saw a show on the teev a couple of years ago where they used dogs to “sniff out” cancers on the breaths of patients. One particular dog was picking the one cancerous sample from a group of four with 100% accuracy for weeks on end, until it’s success rate suddenly dropped to 25% (back to random chance) for no explicable reason.
When they work, they are extremely accurate, until they are not.
I wonder if it was double-blind?
Yes. Whitecoats put the samples in 4 open containers, then the handler and dog entered the room. The majority of the time, the dog ran straight up to the correct container and ignored the others.
buffy said:
Dark Orange said:I saw a show on the teev a couple of years ago where they used dogs to “sniff out” cancers on the breaths of patients. One particular dog was picking the one cancerous sample from a group of four with 100% accuracy for weeks on end, until it’s success rate suddenly dropped to 25% (back to random chance) for no explicable reason.
When they work, they are extremely accurate, until they are not.
Can you remember what country? I’ll see if I can find the research paper, if there is one. There are quite a few on dogs olfactory systems detecting cancer.
US, from memory.
Patients breathed into small cardboard tubes which were then sealed into bags. The “star” dog looked kelpy-ish.
Dark Orange said:
buffy said:
Dark Orange said:I saw a show on the teev a couple of years ago where they used dogs to “sniff out” cancers on the breaths of patients. One particular dog was picking the one cancerous sample from a group of four with 100% accuracy for weeks on end, until it’s success rate suddenly dropped to 25% (back to random chance) for no explicable reason.
When they work, they are extremely accurate, until they are not.
Can you remember what country? I’ll see if I can find the research paper, if there is one. There are quite a few on dogs olfactory systems detecting cancer.
US, from memory.
Patients breathed into small cardboard tubes which were then sealed into bags. The “star” dog looked kelpy-ish.
Type of cancer would be lung then?
buffy said:
Dark Orange said:
buffy said:Can you remember what country? I’ll see if I can find the research paper, if there is one. There are quite a few on dogs olfactory systems detecting cancer.
US, from memory.
Patients breathed into small cardboard tubes which were then sealed into bags. The “star” dog looked kelpy-ish.
Type of cancer would be lung then?
Breast cancer.
Dark Orange said:
buffy said:
Dark Orange said:US, from memory.
Patients breathed into small cardboard tubes which were then sealed into bags. The “star” dog looked kelpy-ish.
Type of cancer would be lung then?
Breast cancer.
Hmm, nothing jumps out immediately on a Google Scholar search.
Anyway, here is an overview of the research on dogs detecting cancer from breath samples (as at 2015):
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4770726/
Detection of cancer through exhaled breath: a systematic review
Smell seems to be the only sense we can’t do better with technology
buffy said:
Dark Orange said:
buffy said:Type of cancer would be lung then?
Breast cancer.
Hmm, nothing jumps out immediately on a Google Scholar search.
I have a feeling this was it – it was either PBS or BBC.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0952646/
Dark Orange said:
buffy said:
Dark Orange said:Breast cancer.
Hmm, nothing jumps out immediately on a Google Scholar search.
I have a feeling this was it – it was either PBS or BBC.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0952646/
I did find that, but there’s not much information. And it’s dated 2005. Doesn’t really matter. The research continues.
Tau.Neutrino said:
Maybe you didnt read this bitsupertasters in a new study experienced COVID-19 symptoms for only about five days, compared with an average 23 days among non-tasters.
An average of 5 days compared with 23 days
I would be looking at that, Not casually dismissing it.
Sure I looked at that, but it’s not true is it. It’s 15 to 24 days depending on the strain.
Unless of course you die from it. Then 5 days of symptoms is possible, followed by death.
Tau.Neutrino said:
SCIENCE said:Tau.Neutrino said:Diversion from what, COVID or something else?From the important stuff that works: standard test tracé isolate, full quarantine without exception, masque, sanitation / hygiène.
Maybe you didn’t read what I posted
so Ill post the important bits
The dogs could detect the virus with up to 94.3 per cent sensitivity
The dogs outperforming lateral flow tests, which have an overall sensitivity of between 58 per cent and 77 per cent.
You want to casually dismiss those figures as a diversion?
No, we comprehensively dismiss them as a diversion.
Example read these bits and think about them.
SA Health authorities said the person was a “friend” and was not deemed high-risk enough to also be transferred to the dedicated facility.
The person, who later tested positive to the virus, was instead moved to room in the Playford medi-hotel which was adjacent to the Wollert man.
A report released yesterday found the virus was likely transmitted between that person and the Victorian man when they opened their doors to collect food.
South Australian authorities have now changed their policy to move close contacts of positive cases to a separate part of the medi-hotel, but not the dedicated facility.
Off to play with documents enjoy.
New imaging tech finds hidden lung damage in long COVID patients
The new scan involves a patient inhaling xenon gas, allowing clinicians to see structure and regional ventilation in the lungs. University of Oxford Department of Oncology
A new type of imaging technology has detected lung damage in patients suffering from the long-term effects of COVID-19. The weakened lung function was not visible on standard MRI or CT scans and its detection will help clinicians understand the persistent breathing impairments seen in patients with long COVID.
The phenomenon of long COVID is still a bit of a mystery, with researchers only just beginning to grasp the long-term implications of infection with this novel coronavirus. Fatigue and breathlessness are two of the most commonly reported lingering symptoms in COVID-19 patients following discharge from hospital. Yet standard MRI and CT scans often deliver normal results leaving many clinicians unable to empirically explain these patient symptoms.
An ongoing study in the UK, called PHOSP-COVID, is tracking a large number of patients closely for many months following hospitalization, and a small arm of that study is investigating long-term lung problems in this cohort.
The research is using a new kind of imaging technology called hyperpolarized xenon MRI (129Xe MRI). The technology offers incredibly detailed insights into lung function and gas transfer into the bloodstream.
“The 129Xe MRI is pinpointing the parts of the lung where the physiology of oxygen uptake is impaired due to long standing effects of COVID-19 on the lungs, even though they often look normal on CT scans,” says Jim Wild, head of imaging at the University of Sheffield.
The study is small, involving scans from nine long COVID patients, averaging around six months post-hospitalization. All nine subjects reported persistent breathlessness and all nine subjects returned normal CT lung scans.
“Our follow-up scans using hyperpolarized xenon MRI have found that abnormalities not normally visible on regular scans are indeed present, and these abnormalities are preventing oxygen getting into the bloodstream as it should in all parts of the lungs,” says Fergus Gleeson, a radiologist working on the new study.
The revolutionary imaging technique is offering some of the first empirical signs of lung damage in long COVID patients, affirming this is not merely a hypochondriacal condition. The findings also offer researchers a useful way to monitor lung damage, with future studies now able to track how long the damage may last for, and whether any particular interventions can help.
“We have some way to go before fully comprehending the nature of the lung impairment that follows a COVID-19 infection,” adds Gleeson. “But these findings, which are the product of a clinical-academic collaboration between Oxford and Sheffield, are an important step on the path to understanding the biological basis of long COVID and that in turn will help us to develop more effective therapies.”
The new study was published in the journal Radiology.
https://newatlas.com/health-wellbeing/xenon-mri-lung-damage-long-covid-patients/
PermeateFree said:
New imaging tech finds hidden lung damage in long COVID patients
The new scan involves a patient inhaling xenon gas, allowing clinicians to see structure and regional ventilation in the lungs. University of Oxford Department of OncologyA new type of imaging technology has detected lung damage in patients suffering from the long-term effects of COVID-19. The weakened lung function was not visible on standard MRI or CT scans and its detection will help clinicians understand the persistent breathing impairments seen in patients with long COVID.
The phenomenon of long COVID is still a bit of a mystery, with researchers only just beginning to grasp the long-term implications of infection with this novel coronavirus. Fatigue and breathlessness are two of the most commonly reported lingering symptoms in COVID-19 patients following discharge from hospital. Yet standard MRI and CT scans often deliver normal results leaving many clinicians unable to empirically explain these patient symptoms.
An ongoing study in the UK, called PHOSP-COVID, is tracking a large number of patients closely for many months following hospitalization, and a small arm of that study is investigating long-term lung problems in this cohort.
The research is using a new kind of imaging technology called hyperpolarized xenon MRI (129Xe MRI). The technology offers incredibly detailed insights into lung function and gas transfer into the bloodstream.
“The 129Xe MRI is pinpointing the parts of the lung where the physiology of oxygen uptake is impaired due to long standing effects of COVID-19 on the lungs, even though they often look normal on CT scans,” says Jim Wild, head of imaging at the University of Sheffield.
The study is small, involving scans from nine long COVID patients, averaging around six months post-hospitalization. All nine subjects reported persistent breathlessness and all nine subjects returned normal CT lung scans.
“Our follow-up scans using hyperpolarized xenon MRI have found that abnormalities not normally visible on regular scans are indeed present, and these abnormalities are preventing oxygen getting into the bloodstream as it should in all parts of the lungs,” says Fergus Gleeson, a radiologist working on the new study.
The revolutionary imaging technique is offering some of the first empirical signs of lung damage in long COVID patients, affirming this is not merely a hypochondriacal condition. The findings also offer researchers a useful way to monitor lung damage, with future studies now able to track how long the damage may last for, and whether any particular interventions can help.
“We have some way to go before fully comprehending the nature of the lung impairment that follows a COVID-19 infection,” adds Gleeson. “But these findings, which are the product of a clinical-academic collaboration between Oxford and Sheffield, are an important step on the path to understanding the biological basis of long COVID and that in turn will help us to develop more effective therapies.”
The new study was published in the journal Radiology.
https://newatlas.com/health-wellbeing/xenon-mri-lung-damage-long-covid-patients/
More proof that “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” is a serious misunderstanding of reality.
