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Antibody Testing For Coronavirus
May 11, 2020
Antibody Testing for COVID-19 Antibodies
First off, what is an antibody? An antibody is a specific blood protein produced by your body’s immune system to counteract “alien bodies” in your blood, such as bacteria and viruses. Your body produces these antibodies after exposure to bacteria and viruses. Your body will produce specific antibodies depending on what type of infection you have. Each antibody produced is different, and scientists and doctors can usually tell what you have had in the past, based on the different antibodies that your body produces. This is how we are able to detect COVID-19 antibodies in your blood.
While having COVID-19 antibodies is not 100% guarantee that you are immune to this virus, it does show that you have had it, survived it, and are less likely to catch it again. Even if you do have antibodies, you still should practice common sense precautions. If you sneeze or cough, do so in your elbow or shoulder and not towards anybody. Wash hands on a regular basis, use hand sanitizer. Practice social distancing (approx. 6-10 feet) and try to keep your hands away from your eyes, mouth, and nose. These are great practices to get into for any virus including the flu.
There is a push to get antibody tests out to the public for a few reasons. The biggest of these is to not only identify if you now have antibodies to COVID-19, but to let you know that you could donate your plasma to help other people who are currently battling with this virus. Across the country, doctors are trying to give blood with antibody's to needy patients who have COVID-19 with antibody blood, so that it should help them fight off this virus. There has been some success with this in the more severe cases and little to no side effects. If you have COVID-19 antibodies you could very well, save someone’s life.
The COVID-19 antibody test is a “send out” test to a lab that is used. Results are typically back within 1-2 business days. The antibody test requires that blood be drawn from your arm. It is a quantitative test
(in other words we will get a reading of concentration if you have the presence of antibodies which is a level of antibodies). This is opposed to a qualitative test
(which is simply a "yes" or "no"). A quantitative test
offers a less likely "false positive" and is therefore more accurate. The purpose of the antibody test is NOT to diagnose COVID-19, as this should be done car side with a nasal swab sample. Antibody testing will tell your provider if you have been infected with COVID-19 in the past. Theoretically, this should convey immunity to the COVID-19 virus. We are learning more about this virus on a daily basis, and we suspect that although the presence of antibodies to COVID-19 should convey some type of immunity to it, the status of the individual's immune system is super important as well. All our bodies respond differently and with this new virus, it is not any different.
If you have any more questions about antibody tests or getting a COVID-19 test please contact your Physician or give us a call at 432-366-0207.
WesTex Urgent Care offers COVID-19 vaccines to the Odessa, TX area. Click here to learn more about how often you should get a COVID-19 booster!
WesTex Urgent Care is an STD testing facility serving Midland, TX. Click here to learn more about the importance of STD testing!
Getting the flu shot each year comes with numerous benefits. If you're looking for a flu clinic in the Midland & Odessa, TX areas, visit WesTex Urgent Care!
As most of you know by now there are people concerned with the effectiveness of the COVID-19 test. We want to help you understand what is going on. The COVID-19 virus, of the coronavirus family, is a brand-new virus this year. So, any testing for this virus had to be researched and put through trials until an effective one could be mass-produced. After that, labs across the country had to re-gear and adopt the new detection so that it could be administered to the general population on a limited basis. Now we are seeing that it is easier for people in almost all communities to be able to receive a COVID-19 test if you qualify, there are still a limited amount available, but once again, better than it was. As the health community does more research and testing, the effectiveness should get better. Right now, we are at a 70-80% effective rate. So, for every 10 people that actually have COVID-19, we can identify 7-8 of them. This is far better than where we were just months ago. Also, more places are able to test more people. To put this into perspective, the flu virus testing we provide is 96% + effective, so for every 100 people infected we can identify 96 or better, of them as having the virus. This was not always the case. In the 1990’s they invented a swab test for the flu. At best estimates that test was only 50-70% effective. Before that, there was a blood test with better results but it never gained in popularity. In the past 25 years, we have made great strides to increase the capability and the ease for the patient to take it. Now back to the COVID-19 test, it is not as accurate as some people might want, but it will get better as our understanding of this brand-new virus improves. The medical community is pushing hard to increase the effectiveness of this test, and improvements have already been made. We want everyone to know that this is constantly talked about and new ideas for detection are already underway. WesTex Urgent Care is fortunate enough to offer a “Point of Care” test for COVID-19 with test results in less than 30 minutes. It has the same effectiveness as the previous test but with a much faster result time. These are new, so they are limited, but if they are widely accepted there will continue to be more available. Changes like these will continue and improve the way we test for COVID-19. We desire a more effective test for our community as well, but we realize that 70-80% is far better than what the flu test was when it started. If you have any additional questions about coronavirus testing, please contact us . We are happy to help.
WesTex Urgent Care would like to share a little bit about Coronavirus/COVID-19. First of all, so much of our country is operating in panic mode right now, which is causing so much fear to happen, it is hard to believe. Most often panic is based on fear, fear of the unknown. Some of that is understandable at the present time because COVID 19 is a new virus. It is never been reported before, so none of us have any natural immunity to it. Let's start with the facts. Understanding more about the virus and educating the public on it should help reduce unnecessary panic. Knowledge is power! We should try to use some common sense and logical thinking on how we are going to treat the Coronavirus infection. 1. Coronavirus/COVID19 is a viral infection. There is no specific treatment for it, we only treat the symptoms. With a mortality rate currently estimated to be at 3-4%, that means 96-97% of people who contract coronavirus will recover just fine with only supportive care. One major difference between influenza and coronavirus is the incubation period. It is 7-14 days with coronavirus but only 2-5 days with influenza. 2. There are no readily available testing kits anywhere at the present time. There are limited test kits available which is why they are trying to make sure that tests are being used judiciously. There is a testing center in Odessa. Although coronavirus may present with symptoms similar to a cold or the flu, the only people that meet criteria to be tested for coronavirus at the present time are those that have either been exposed to someone with known coronavirus infection or those that have been to areas such as China, Japan, Iran, Italy, and a few other countries around the world. Testing may still require approval from the Texas Department of Health. 3. Please do not get out in public if you are sick unless it is necessary. Many people that are ill can be screened at home. This would be a great time to access our Virtual Visits which can be accomplished by going to our website, https://www.westexurgentcare.com/virtual-visit-confirmation. 4. There have been no reported cases in our area yet as of today. The nearest reported cases are in the Dallas and San Antonio area. So please do not go to the store and try to buy all of the disinfectant materials such as hand wipes, hand sanitizer, masks, and gloves. and other things similar. There are many people that are ill right now with cold and flu like symptoms. At WesTex Urgent Care we are trying to be proactive in caring for our patients who may present with symptoms suspicious for coronavirus. It is important to understand that there is only limited testing available for coronavirus. There is no commercially available test kit for checking for coronavirus. If you think you may have the coronavirus, we encourage you to call our clinic or go to our website and access our clinic via a virtual visit. This will be alive face-to-face conversation with a local healthcare provider, and we can advise you on the most appropriate care for your condition. As with all viral infections, covering your mouth when you cough or sneeze is very important. This followed by appropriate hand washing or the use of hand sanitizer. If you have a mask available and you are ill by all means put that on whenever you are in a public place. We want to be there for all of the Permian Basin to help everyone understand this pandemic. But panic in this situation is not helpful. Please feel free to call us at any of our three locations in Midland and Odessa, TX, or again access our virtual visits via our website. We will be more than glad to help you with any of your health care needs.
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