The British Medical Association´s MedicalDiction Dogs cooperated with scientists from the London School of Health and Tropical Medicine and the University of Durham in the North East of England to see if dogs can help detect BCFD 19 infections. Through its strong sense of smell.
This study comes after previous research that showed dogs´ ability to detect malaria through the sense of smell and it is based on the belief that each disease is characterized by a different aroma.
The organizations indicated that they began preparations to train dogs within six weeks "to help provide a rapid diagnosis and without the introduction of medical equipment into the body, in an attempt to end the epidemic."
The Medical Dietition Dogs Foundation has previously trained dogs to detect diseases such as cancer, Parkinson´s and bacterial infections by smelling samples taken from patients.
These animals can also detect slight changes in the skin temperature, making it useful to determine if a person has a fever.
"In principle, we are sure that dogs can detect Covid 19," said Claire Geist of MedicalDiction Dogs and its chief executive. "We are now looking at a safe way in which we can catch the scent of the virus from patients and present it to dogs."
"The goal is for dogs to be able to examine people, including those without symptoms, and tell us if they need to undergo the necessary tests. This method will be fast and effective and will also contribute to reducing the use and limited use of the NHS test resources only when There will be an actual need for that. "
Dogs can be deployed to airports at the end of a pandemic to identify the people who carry the virus, which helps prevent the disease from reappearing, according to Steve Lindsay of Durham University.
More than 500,000 new cases of coronavirus have been recorded in 182 countries, including 22,920 deaths, according to Agence France-Presse statistics, based on official country data and WHO numbers.
