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mucifer

(23,558 posts)
Sun Aug 16, 2020, 09:35 AM Aug 2020

University of Illinois low cost saliva covid test:



The Executive Committee of the University of Illinois Board of Trustees on Monday created a new university-related organization as part of a broad effort to expand the reach of saliva-based testing pioneered by U of I researchers that supports widespread testing with rapid results to limit spread of the COVID-19 virus.

Known as Shield T3, the new organization will make the technology available nationally and was established in response to inquiries from universities and institutions across the country. Interest surged after researchers in Urbana-Champaign unveiled the technology to promote safety when on-campus instruction resumes later this month. Since then, it has been expanded to the U of I System’s universities in Chicago and Springfield.

Along with the new university-related organization, the U of I System has already created a new internal unit that is working to make the tests available in Illinois. The unit, known as SHIELD Illinois, will continue building current testing capacity, and hopes to ultimately offer testing to institutions and entities across the state.

U of I System President Tim Killeen said the initiatives reflect a commitment that the university system has carried for more than 150 years.

“We were created to serve our state and our nation, a role we have filled with distinction during the COVID-19 crisis, from leading-edge epidemiological modeling to front-line care at our healthcare enterprise in Chicago,” Killeen said. “Expanding our breakthrough, saliva-based testing will be a real game-changer, providing fast and efficient results that will protect lives and livelihoods.”

Gov. J.B. Pritzker praised the U of I System’s innovation, and efforts to spread the groundbreaking technology across the state and beyond.

“The University of Illinois is living up to its reputation as a world-class research institution, with these promising innovations in rapid saliva testing during this pandemic,” Pritzker said. “I’m proud of their effort and what they have achieved so far, and look forward to what this promising breakthrough can mean for our state and the world.”


https://news.uillinois.edu/view/7815/1904934500
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University of Illinois low cost saliva covid test: (Original Post) mucifer Aug 2020 OP
Oh, wouldn't this be great if it's accurate! lark Aug 2020 #1
Me too! If it does, here's hoping they can figure out a way crickets Aug 2020 #3
Yup, accuracy is the key. The current tests are not great Amishman Aug 2020 #5
Yes. My daughter & SIL both got 2 accurate tests & 1 inaccurate. lark Aug 2020 #6
The article says absolutely nothing about PoindexterOglethorpe Aug 2020 #2
+100000000 Celerity Aug 2020 #4
Article Yesterday Said... ProfessorGAC Aug 2020 #7
Comparable to the current nasal swab. PoindexterOglethorpe Aug 2020 #8
We Can Look Up Those Numbers ProfessorGAC Aug 2020 #9
I think I'd like to see the actual false negatives and false positives for a specific test. PoindexterOglethorpe Aug 2020 #10

crickets

(25,982 posts)
3. Me too! If it does, here's hoping they can figure out a way
Sun Aug 16, 2020, 01:00 PM
Aug 2020

to either ramp up production or get more involvement nationwide to produce this for everyone.

Amishman

(5,559 posts)
5. Yup, accuracy is the key. The current tests are not great
Sun Aug 16, 2020, 02:35 PM
Aug 2020

Accuracy any lower and they be borderline too inaccurate to use.

lark

(23,138 posts)
6. Yes. My daughter & SIL both got 2 accurate tests & 1 inaccurate.
Sun Aug 16, 2020, 03:20 PM
Aug 2020

The inaccurate one was the "instant" one, the nasal swabs were correct.

PoindexterOglethorpe

(25,873 posts)
2. The article says absolutely nothing about
Sun Aug 16, 2020, 12:39 PM
Aug 2020

how accurate it is. Or what percentage of false positives or false negatives occur. Those numbers are hugely important.

ProfessorGAC

(65,134 posts)
7. Article Yesterday Said...
Sun Aug 16, 2020, 03:25 PM
Aug 2020

...comparable to the current nasal swab.
So, there are the same issues with false numbers, but it's much cheaper.
So, retesting is a pretty strong option.
I thought I read it on the Chicago Sun-Times site, but I couldn't find it there. Sorry about that.

PoindexterOglethorpe

(25,873 posts)
8. Comparable to the current nasal swab.
Sun Aug 16, 2020, 05:10 PM
Aug 2020

And exactly how accurate is that? Again, nothing concrete is being given.

ProfessorGAC

(65,134 posts)
9. We Can Look Up Those Numbers
Sun Aug 16, 2020, 05:28 PM
Aug 2020

I think you're being cynical on this.
Given the speed, low cost & self-adminstration, "comparable" is a positive.
Cheaper, faster, easier for similar results?
Not sure how you see a negative here. Because it's not perfect?

PoindexterOglethorpe

(25,873 posts)
10. I think I'd like to see the actual false negatives and false positives for a specific test.
Sun Aug 16, 2020, 06:29 PM
Aug 2020

There seem to be a very large number of different ones out there. Early on I was seeing false negatives and false positives, often both for the same test, as high as 30%. All of a sudden those numbers have simply disappeared. I should not have to be the one researching, trying to figure out precisely which test is being used, and what it's accuracy and reliability is. That should be put out there.

When a vaccine is first started being given, I will bet you anything all we will ever be told is "safe" and "reliable" without any actual statistics connected to it. Influenza vaccines have notoriously low efficacy, although most years the percentage of good it does is made public.


I'm not asking for perfection. I'm only asking for solid numbers. Which shouldn't be an unreasonable expectation.

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