getting to someone before they're infectious can make or break the contact tracing campaign. a mass testing program in northern italy has identified over 3000 coronavirus cases. and many of those people had no idea that they had covered 19 testing can clearly be a powerful tool for combating the spread of the virus. but what tests you do and where is key? we report from a hospital in a corona virus test to make sure this patient's not infected ahead of her operation in a few days time. if it doesn't hurt exactly, but it's very unpleasant. it feels like the swab is poking around in your brain, but the test is obligatory to protect other patients and staff at hospitals like this one in berlin. but many people in germany would like the chance to be tested more regularly. it would be good if we could use the tests to make things like

travelling easier to be a bit safer, but that doesn't look likely any time soon with testing capacity at its limits. the government is trying to ease the pressure on overworked labs, even some hospitals are shifting away from the more reliable p.c.r. tests. instead using the faster cheaper antigen test to check best stuff for the virus. has the advantage of rapid tests is that we get a result within 30 minutes. it's relatively reliable and a relatively easy testing system based on the other hand, the disadvantage is that we know the rapid tests are slightly less sensitive to the virus. the p.c.r. test is the gold standard. it's more precise than the rapid test because it's a fine balance between what's reliable and what's practical. but the rapid test come with that challenges to. in germany, they can only be administered by a trained health worker that costs time and money and means people can't test

themselves at home. nurse eve bomb and understands the tyler has hospital staff. of course, we would have liked to keep using the p.c.r. tests because they're more sensitive. but i understand the labs are at their limit and we need the p.c.r. as more urgently for the patients. when they arrive with symptoms, then we have to know fast, but for sure whether they really have coronavirus or not. bahman gets tested once every 2 weeks enough to feel safe, he says, but it's clear any hopes testing could be rolled out on a broader scale. we'll have to wait for many, that means a test of patience instead. now there are 3 types of tests being carried out on citizens around the world at the moment. the 1st tests for a past infection is called an antibody test or a serological test. a blood sample is needed for this test. it's then analyzed on the existence of antibodies. these are produced by our bodies when they face an

infection and can be detected once it's over. the other 2 tests look out for an ongoing infection with sars to the 1st of these is the antigen test. it needs a sample of saliva or throat tissue which can then be analyzed for the proteins that sit on the outside of the corona virus. these tests can give results quickly, but they're not as precise as the p.c.r. test. for the p.c.r. test, you also need saliva or throat tissue. but this time it's tested for the viruses genome which is known as r.n.a. . the p.c.r. test is the most reliable one, but in many cases it needs more time to be analyzed. now i've been speaking to evangelise scott suffer less from the association. the represents ever 200 accredited laboratories here in germany. i asked him why,

when we have these more accurate p.c.r. tests, we still need another type of test, a covered 19 less secure a one year median to do just well, it's a, it's a tradeoff, i guess, between speed and accuracy. we have multiple settings in patient care where we cannot wait 567 or even 24 hours for a test result. so take someone who is really needed to a hospital or in an emergency setting, for example, of all in aged care or in an old people's home. someone is slow because it develops a high fever or not, you need responds very, very fast. and in such settings, it may be acceptable to work with a little bit less curiosity and less sensitive teeth. and that's how these tests have been designed as well. so tests also have a package insert like a drug, like a prescription drug. and it's very clear that these tests have been designed to detect a virus in people who are symptomatic and within

a certain time window. and those are the incidents where these tests are not extremely good at the moment. in broad based screening, where people are generally asymptomatic, they look and feel healthy, where they could still be infected. and with these people into treatment and especially the road test, do not have a very hard sensitivity. and we recommend p.c.r. testing should be done. instead for increasingly seeing mass testing programs being carried out in various parts of the world. is that an effective way of actually defeating coronavirus? is it just telling you where seeds? well, it's a different quality of the program, but it's not the continuous, permanent screening and track and trace program. we currently do robotics crowd around the country. however, it has its purpose to it basically shines a spotlight into the part of the population at a certain point in time and tells us how many infected people might be. the trouble

with that is a little bit dirt and engine tests again used. and if the prevalence in the population of the disease is very low, like we have now seen all the italy over this past week and the positive rate there was below one percent. the risk of both positive and false negative results is very, very high. and we also see the problem in the negative, and the result could give some false certainty because people can in fact, or get infected pretty quickly after the head test taken. but with a negative result, they might feel safe and everything's fine and take over doing what's that are doing, which is not quite the case. so we have to be careful with these results, but it gives us interesting statistics to see how many people might be infected within a certain population group. if you want to do y. about the virus, but this you would have to repeated every day. and i would have to repeat the

entire population. and of course, it's a big enough fake getting those people tested once, isn't it? and the antibody tests testing as someone who's had coronavirus in the past. why is that useful? particularly when we don't know how long or even if that does make you immune well, that's precisely the point is so, and that's also why it's not being applied very much in the moment. so if you know someone has had the infection, the person has tested positive through the p.c.r. test has perhaps even been admitted to hospital. it is interesting to attract the antibody developments. there are different types of antibodies which build over time, some very quickly within our school and moon system runs up to a fight in a drug that's a sudden on to develop over time and then stay. and so it's very interesting to measure in concern positive cases. how long do antibodies stand it?

which type of antibodies build over the period of time? but for the current fighting of the pend, there is not a very relevant information. we need to know who is infected right now and who has to the eyes of the head and put into the everybody test doesn't help us with vangelis cuts off a loss from thank you so much for joining us on the call in 1000 special security and now is the part of the road on where you get to ask the questions to ask science correspondent, that aquariums if you're diagnosed with covered 19 and a recovering, it's higher. what measures should you take to prevent your family from catching it as well? the last thing you want to do if you catch cove at 19 is give it to your friends or family. unfortunately, that can prove challenging if you live in the same household. on the positive side, the evidence we have so far indicates that after your symptoms appear with every day that passes,

you'll likely grow less infectious though it's still grinding its way through studies at least. currently, we think that maximum infectiousness hits around the 1st day that you show symptoms if not before. so if you tested positive after you develop symptoms and are now convalescing at home and the people around you have tested negative, then the likelihood you'll infect them should as a rule drop by the day. here's what authorities recommend you do 1st, no visitors of course, and both you and caregivers should wear masks and any interactions, even if it's hard. stay as isolated as you possibly can, preferably in your own room with a window that can remain open. if temperatures permitted, door closed, try to only eat there as well. a dedicated set of silverware and plates is a good idea. if you have the option in your home of multiple bathrooms and toilets,

then dedicate one to your use limit contact with caregivers, if at all possible, they really should belong to a high risk group. they'll need to disinfect regularly. leave any dirty laundry or bed linens, unwashed for as long as possible. and finally, don't forget that caregivers will also need to quarantine for as long as health authorities require, even if that means long after your own. improved. and you can submit a question for derek through you tube channel. we have to sort of time to bring you the latest developments in the race to get a coronavirus vaccine ready for distribution. scientists at oxford university working alongside pharmaceuticals, astra zeneca, say trials show that their vaccine candidate is 70 percent effective, but that is thought to rise as high as 90 percent one and a half doses

a given that is lower than the percentage is given by pfizer, by on tech, and however, the office of vaccine is cheaper to produce. and it's easier to store on robots for any other developments on the virus to go to our website to we dot com slash covers 19 thanks for joining us on the college 19 special. take up

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place a place this is the only news story from berlin corruption and the covert 19 crisis activists show detailed evidence that hungary is misusing pandemic funds. we'll take you to budapest to meet the critics fighting, to call out corruption at the highest levels. many of them fear they will soon be silenced. also coming up the battle of the budgets hungary, poland insists they won't back an e.u. spending plan with major funds earmarked for pandemic relief. so what's being done to break the deadlock will ask portugal's foreign minister plus it's.