The Swab Mob has continued to provide free Covid-19 testing. We recently passed 6,000 people tested. Only 21 have tested positive and most of the positive cases occurred in May. None of the 21 was sick. The Mob will be in action later this morning in Roseland at 189 Eagle Rock Ave.
We still and will continue to perform the standard RT-PCR on nasal swabs. The RT-PCR assay is very sensitive and detects SARS-CoV-2 genomic RNA. Until last weekend, the TAT or turn around time was 36 hours. However, the TAT has increased to 7 days due to increased testing in Florida and other states.
Many have asked about the various SARS-CoV-2 tests out there.
Just a reminder -
- the disease is named Covid-19;
- the virus is named SARS-CoV-2.
The SARS-CoV-2 rapid antigen test is done on-site and take 15 minutes. The rapid test sounds great, but is much less sensitive than the RT-PCR assay. A positive result is usually correct, but a negative rapid SARS-CoV-2 test does not mean that you're truly negative. Further, some or most countries and some employers do not accept a negative rapid test as proof that you're not infected with SARS-CoV-2.
Antibodies are proteins our immune system make against viruses, vaccines, bacteria, and fungi. After each infection/vaccine, our bodies make antibodies, which bind specifically to that virus or vaccine.
Antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 develop in most, but not all pts, who recover from Covid-19. These antibodies are markers of an immune response against SARS-CoV-2. Actually, the sicker the pt, the stronger the antibody response. However, these antibodies probably are not important in preventing re-infection. Most ID doctors feel that reinfection with SARS-CoV-2 is extremely unlikely, at least for several months, after a person recovers from Covid-19, even after a pt's antibody to SARS-CoV-2 wane and become undetectable. Immunity against reinfection to viruses doesn't solely depend on antibodies. Cellular immunity, which is much harder to measure in the lab, is more important in many cases. Further, your immune system has a very strong memory. So once infected and recovered, a person's immune response remembers and, if needed, can respond very quickly to re-exposure. In short, there is no reason to test for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies, except for population studies. For a given person, the presence or absence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies is not particularly helpful, especially, if the person knows she/he had Covid-19 and recovered.
Please feel free to ask any questions privately or publicly.