@AmbroggioPhD Agreed. Not a diagnostics expert but I know the following 1) This discussion is not new and has been ongoing among diagnostics folks, now coming to public view. 2) CT values can matter but converting it to a viral load equivalent is an oversimplification 1/n
@AmbroggioPhD 3) Each machine behaves differently and therefore the amplification being talked about is also going to vary. We are not aware of any standard curve quantifying viral load against CT values 2/n
@AmbroggioPhD 4) Generally speaking, lower CT means more virus but higher CT isn’t necessarily the opposite- it can have different connotations depending on whether it’s an initial test, or a repeat after 7 days, importantly days this symptom onset. 3/n
@AmbroggioPhD 5) The risk of giving a negative early on before the virus peaks would be equivalent to missing it - especially if pandemic is raging and deaths are at an all time high- as is happening in the US. 4/n
@AmbroggioPhD 6) Technology pros and cons, pathology of the disease and epidemiology need to be considered when talking about diagnostics 5/5
@AmbroggioPhD Credit to #ZahraHassan @AKUGlobal for her insights @imran_nisar please tag her if she’s on twitter.
