Dogs being trained to diagnose bug and could screen 750 people an hour
- 4 years ago
EXCLUSIVE: A new project will see the dogs receive samples of fabric worn by coronavirus patients to see if the virus has a unique odour which they can detect which could allow them to screen people
These dogs are to be trained to sniff out the coronavirus and, if the world-leading project is a success, they could screen 750 people an hour.
Medical detection dogs have already been trained to detect diseases such as cancer, Parkinson’s and malaria.
The Covid-19 project, the only one of its kind in the world, is a collaboration between the Medical Detection Dogs charity, the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and Durham University.
Professor James Logan, Head of the Department of Disease Control at the LSHTM, said: “It’s exciting because the project could move at speed as there are six dogs ready to be trained.”
Within the next few weeks, the dogs will receive samples of fabric worn by coronavirus patients to see if Covid-19 has a unique odour which they can detect.
Around eight weeks later, the animals, many of them rescue dogs, could be ready to identify the odour of coronavirus on people, taking just half a second to do so.
Dr Claire Guest, CEO and founder of the Medical Detection Dogs charity, said: “There have already been so many fantastic achievements in the dogs’ work to detect human disease, and I believe they can be trained to sniff out Covid-19.
“When resources and testing kits are low, hundreds of people can’t be tested in one go. But the dogs can screen up to 750 people really quickly. By identifying those who need to be tested and self-isolate, they can stop the spread.
“They offer a fast, effective and non-invasive way to ensure limited NHS testing resources are used only where they are really needed. The dogs can help make a profound impact on the spread of this deadly disease. Their ability is incredible.”
Professor Logan said: “The first thing we need to do is establish whether there is a distinct odour from Covid-19 and if dogs can detect it. We need samples to do that.
“The two main samples we need are face masks and nylons, as nylon is a very good matrix for collecting odour.
“We have to follow protocols with the samples, as they are highly infectious and we need to ensure they’re safe.
“We know that other respiratory diseases change our body odour, and if there is a distinct odour, we are confident the dogs will detect it.
“We’ve done a lot of work with the dogs detecting malaria and found a high level of accuracy – above the World Health Organisation standards for a diagnostic.”
Professor Logan said the dogs would not replace the tests being used now.
He said: “They would work almost in a triage-type scenario. When ports begin opening, we will want to know if people have it. As you might see drug detection dogs walking up and down the line, the same would happen with Covid dogs looking for the infection. If they give us the information, we will advise people to self-isolate. Longer term, we could use t
These dogs are to be trained to sniff out the coronavirus and, if the world-leading project is a success, they could screen 750 people an hour.
Medical detection dogs have already been trained to detect diseases such as cancer, Parkinson’s and malaria.
The Covid-19 project, the only one of its kind in the world, is a collaboration between the Medical Detection Dogs charity, the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and Durham University.
Professor James Logan, Head of the Department of Disease Control at the LSHTM, said: “It’s exciting because the project could move at speed as there are six dogs ready to be trained.”
Within the next few weeks, the dogs will receive samples of fabric worn by coronavirus patients to see if Covid-19 has a unique odour which they can detect.
Around eight weeks later, the animals, many of them rescue dogs, could be ready to identify the odour of coronavirus on people, taking just half a second to do so.
Dr Claire Guest, CEO and founder of the Medical Detection Dogs charity, said: “There have already been so many fantastic achievements in the dogs’ work to detect human disease, and I believe they can be trained to sniff out Covid-19.
“When resources and testing kits are low, hundreds of people can’t be tested in one go. But the dogs can screen up to 750 people really quickly. By identifying those who need to be tested and self-isolate, they can stop the spread.
“They offer a fast, effective and non-invasive way to ensure limited NHS testing resources are used only where they are really needed. The dogs can help make a profound impact on the spread of this deadly disease. Their ability is incredible.”
Professor Logan said: “The first thing we need to do is establish whether there is a distinct odour from Covid-19 and if dogs can detect it. We need samples to do that.
“The two main samples we need are face masks and nylons, as nylon is a very good matrix for collecting odour.
“We have to follow protocols with the samples, as they are highly infectious and we need to ensure they’re safe.
“We know that other respiratory diseases change our body odour, and if there is a distinct odour, we are confident the dogs will detect it.
“We’ve done a lot of work with the dogs detecting malaria and found a high level of accuracy – above the World Health Organisation standards for a diagnostic.”
Professor Logan said the dogs would not replace the tests being used now.
He said: “They would work almost in a triage-type scenario. When ports begin opening, we will want to know if people have it. As you might see drug detection dogs walking up and down the line, the same would happen with Covid dogs looking for the infection. If they give us the information, we will advise people to self-isolate. Longer term, we could use t