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The Atlantic
Antibody tests for the coronavirus have just one scientifically sanctioned job in the clinic. Designed to detect a delayed immune response to the virus, they can help patients determine whether they were once infected effectively, a retroactive diagnosis.
That’s not how a lot of antibody tests are being used.
Across the country, people have flocked to test sites to determine whether they are “immune” to the coronavirus, or even to obtain results that could green-light them to board an international flight. Now they are taking these tests to check whether the vaccine they received actually took. Some experts are even debating whether the tests could serve as a screening tool to identify candidates who might be eligible to skip their second COVID-19 shot.
How has COVID-19 spread without obvious signs?
Mayo Clinic researchers are giving Olmsted County staff, Rochester police and firefighters, and daycare workers antibody tests to determine whether they had the virus and didn t know it. 3:00 pm, Jan. 15, 2021 ×
Elitza Theel, who directs Mayo Clinic’s Infectious Diseases Serology Lab, runs a test on the instrument used to check for antibodies related to COVID-19 infection. (Contributed photo)
Olmsted County’s spike in COVID-19 cases and emerging vaccinations serve as bookends to an effort to gather more information about how the virus is spreading in the community.
Mayo Clinic researchers have partnered with the county, city of Rochester and others to determine how many people might have been walking around with the virus and not known it.