By Larry Quick
Second of a series
The first part if available at thevoice.us/covid-19-tests-accuracy-influence
Earlier this year I came down with the influenza-like symptoms. After three days of gradually increasing misery, I made a visit a convenient care clinic. I was examined by an MD who reviewed my symptoms. The doctor ordered an in-house lab test to determine suffering from a flu virus. The lab test, involving a nasal swab, identified my illness as Influenza A.
Up until March, this is how physicians determined if a patient were suffering from the flu or other respiratory virus, a physical examination for symptoms followed by a lab test to confirm the physician’s diagnosis. After March, this diagnostic protocol was turned upside down for COVID-19. To be considered ill from COVID-19, a respiratory illness, individuals no longer need to be examined by a physician for actual symptoms. All that is necessary is a positive COVID-19 lab test. What does a positive COVID-19 lab test actually mean?
Does a positive COVID-19 lab test mean that the individual is sick with actual symptoms: Cough, fever, body aches, fatigue? Does a positive COVID-19 lab test mean that the individual’s body contains live SARS-CoV-2 viri (plural for the virus that causes the COVID-19 disease)? Does a positive COVID-19 lab test mean that the individual is infectious, and can pass COVID-19 to those with whom they come in contact? One would think that the answer to each of the above questions would be yes. Unfortunately, it is often not the case.
Last week in part one, Matthew Stafford, quarterback for the Detroit Lions, discovered that a positive COVID-19 test result, apparently did not mean a yes answer to any of the above questions. Mike DeWine, governor of Ohio, recently discovered the same truth. Matt and Mike both received a false-positive COVID-19 diagnosis. Apparently, neither Stafford nor DeWine had COVID-19 symptoms, nor a live SARS-CoV-2 virus in their bodies, nor were they capable of infecting others with COVID-19. How are these false diagnoses possible?
The most common lab test to detect the SARS-CoV-2 virus is the RT-PCR test. The full name for the RT-PCR lab technology is Reverse Transcription, Polymerase Chain Reaction. RT-PCR was invented in the 1980s, by Nobel Laureate, Dr. Kary Mullis for DNA laboratory research. According to Dr. Mullis, RT-PCR was never intended to be a diagnostic tool for illness.
RT-PCR is a manufacturing technology that can make billions of copies of a specific DNA sample, making the DNA sample large enough to be studied by scientific researchers. How RT-PCR ended up as a problematic diagnostic tool for illness is a story in itself. RT-PCR is problematic because of its extreme sensitivity.
Swiss immunologist Dr. Beda Stadler describes the situation::
“So if we do a PCR coronavirus test on an person immune from previous exposure, it is not a virus that is detected, but a small shattered part of the viral genome. The test comes back positive for as long as there are tiny shattered parts of the virus left. Even if the infectious viri are long dead, a coronavirus test can come back positive, because the PCR method multiplies even a tiny fraction of the viral genetic material enough to be detected. It is likely that a large number of the daily reported infection numbers are purely due to viral debris. The PCR test with its extreme sensitivity was initially perfect to find out where the virus could be. But this test cannot identify whether the virus is still alive, i.e. still infectious.”
To summarize, when a person receives a positive for SARs-2, the test may be reading the “viral debris” from a past COVID-19 illness. So, absent a positive clinical diagnosis, that is an exam by a physician, a positive COVID-19 lab test does not necessarily indicate an infection. Yet, all positive COVID-19 lab tests are being counted as confirmed cases. Debris from dead SARS-CoV-2 viri can remain in the body for weeks after an individual has recovered from COVID-19. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Centers for Disease and Control Prevention (CDC) recently updated guidance for those who have recovered from a coronavirus infection, based on findings that they continue to test positive for three months, without infecting others.
Each day the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) posts new COVID-19 tests conducted, new COVID-19 cases confirmed, and new deaths attributed to COVID-19. Why are these daily numbers important?
Governor JB Pritzker recently issued a COVID-19 warning to Kane County and other Illinois counties. This warning suggests, that additional restrictions may be imposed on our social and economic life, should Kane County positive COVID-19 lab tests, continue to exceed a weekly predetermined limit of 50 new cases per 100.000 residents per week. Kane County’s current population is close to 550,000 residents.
The third part is available at thevoice.us/kane-county-hospital-covid-19-admissions-low