(CNN) – Trials are underway in the UK to see if specially trained airport sniffer dogs can detect Covid-19 in travelers, even before symptoms appear.
Sniffer dogs are already a common sight at airports, usually searching for drugs, weapons or other contraband.
But specially trained dogs have also been trained to detect infections and diseases, such as cancer, malaria, and Parkinson’s disease.
Researchers at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, in collaboration with Medical Detection Dogs and the University of Durham in the UK, say that respiratory diseases change body odor, and believe that trained dogs will be able to resume this change in patients. from Covid.
The UK government has given the team over £ 500,000 (over $ 600,000) to invest in the research.
This preliminary test has recruited six dogs, called “The Super Six”, all are Labradors or Cocker Spaniels.
Masks and nylon stockings
Professor James Logan, principal investigator of the project and head of the disease control department at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine is confident that the trial will yield results.
“It builds on years of research that we have already conducted as a team to demonstrate that people who have a malaria infection have a distinctive body odor and we have shown that dogs can be trained to detect it with very high precision.” says Logan
So what is the training process like?
Professor Steve Lindsay, a public health entomologist at Durham University in the UK, says the first step is to collect samples of human odors, both for people who tested positive for Covid-19 and for people who do not have the disease. .
They are having subjects wear masks for a few hours. The masks are then passed to the dogs and used to help animals distinguish between different scents.
Not only are masks worn, but they also make subjects wear nylon socks.
“Which is kind of weird,” admits Lindsay. “But we have learned from our previous experience that this is a very good way to collect smells from people and it is such an easy way to do it.”
Dogs are known to get Covid-19, but there is no evidence that the virus can spread from one dog to another. The Medical Detection Dogs team assures CNN that the dogs are well cared for and will stay safe from infection.
“Our dogs will be trained in a dead virus and then they will have no contact with the individuals they are testing, but they will sniff the air around the person,” says Rep. Gemma Butlin.
“Only dogs will be allowed to be touched by the handler, which means there will be a very low risk of spreading the dog virus to their handler or to the people they live with.”
Starting the travel industry
The researchers believe that if the trial is successful, it could be a way to boost the travel industry, which has been halted since the start of the pandemic.
The researchers hope that the first group of dogs can be deployed at key entry points, such as airports, in the UK in the next six months. Each dog could potentially detect up to 250 people per hour.
“The basic idea is that we can examine travelers who innocently come to this country and who can carry Covid-19, detect those people and isolate them from the rest of the community,” says Lindsay.
“Hopefully this avoids a second spike and allows precious NHS resources to be used where it is most needed,” Guest said. “We are incredibly proud that a dog’s nose can once again save many lives.”
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