Scientists have long been interested in creating portable devices that can quickly and painlessly screen a person for disease simply by taking a whiff of their breath. But delivering on this dream has proved to be a challenge. Different diseases may cause similar breath changes. Diet can affect the chemicals someone exhales, as can smoking and alcohol consumption, potentially complicating disease detection.
Still, scientists say, advances in sensor technology and machine learning, combined with new research and investment spurred by the pandemic, mean that the moment for disease-detecting breathalyzers may have finally arrived.
Ive been working in the area of breath research for almost 20 years now, said Cristina Davis, an engineer at the University of California, Davis. And during that time, weve seen it progress from a nascent stage to really being something that I think is close to being deployed.
In May, when musicians from dozens of countries descended on Rotterdam, the Netherlands, for the Eurovision Song Contest, they had to pass a breath test before they were allowed onstage. The musicians were asked to exhale into a device the size of a water bottle called the SpiroNose, which analyzed the chemical compounds in their breath to detect signatures of a coronavirus infection. If the results came back negative, the performers were cleared to compete.
The SpiroNose, made by the Dutch company Breathomix, is just one of many breath-based coronavirus tests under development across the world. In May, Singapores health agency granted provisional authorization to two such tests, made by the domestic companies Breathonix and Silver Factory Technology. And researchers at Ohio State University say they have applied to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for an emergency authorization of their coronavirus breathalyzer.
Its clear now, I think, that you can detect this disease with a breath test, said Paul Thomas, a chemist at Loughborough University in England. This isnt science fiction.
Read more from the original source:
Breath-Based Coronavirus Tests Are Being Developed - The New York Times
- Can coronavirus live on your clothes and shoes? Here's what we know - CNET [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- 'Absolutely horrifying: New York nursing home reports 98 deaths linked to coronavirus - Press Herald [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- Coronavirus pandemic in the US: Live updates - CNN [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- Millions Had Risen Out of Poverty. Coronavirus Is Pulling Them Back. - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- How Long Does COVID-19 Coronavirus Live On Clothes? How To Wash Them - Forbes [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- These New Yorkers fleeing coronavirus vow they'll never return - New York Post [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- Poop could help stop the pandemic. Really. - POLITICO [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- Where did it go wrong for the UK on coronavirus? - CNN [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- Potential coronavirus vaccine being tested in Germany could 'supply millions' by end of year - CNN [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- Coronavirus spares one neighborhood but ravages the next. Race and class spell the difference. - USA TODAY [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- Life in Trumps Coronavirus Ghetto - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- Why Georgia Is Reopening Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic - The Atlantic [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- New Coronavirus Test Offers Advantages: Just Spit and Wait - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- Will Warm Weather Slow Coronavirus? - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- Trump Brings Religion Into the Coronavirus Culture War - The Atlantic [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- Berkshire Hathaway Lost $49.7 Billion in First Quarter Stung by Coronavirus - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- Coronavirus in Chicago: How the mayor of the nation's 3rd-largest city is waging her biggest fight - USA TODAY [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- Russia now has second-highest rate of Covid-19 spread as other countries ease restrictions - The Guardian [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- Number of coronavirus cases from second warship outbreak nears 100 as Navy restricts information on pandemic - CNN [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- Why Days 5 to 10 Are So Important When You Have Coronavirus - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- How Coronavirus Mutates and Spreads - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- No leadership and no plan: is Trump about to fail the US on coronavirus testing? - The Guardian [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2020]
- Noraneko, noted Southeast Portland ramen shop, will not reopen after coronavirus crisis - OregonLive [Last Updated On: May 9th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 9th, 2020]
- Coronavirus Survivors Want Answers, and China Is Silencing Them - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 9th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 9th, 2020]
- Rashes, headaches, tingling: the less common coronavirus symptoms that patients have - The Guardian [Last Updated On: May 9th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 9th, 2020]
- Coronavirus Killing Black Britons at Twice the Rate of Whites - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 9th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 9th, 2020]
- Coronavirus survivors banned from joining the military - Military Times [Last Updated On: May 9th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 9th, 2020]
- Engaged in December and married by May, coronavirus shaped our relationship ... and our wedding - CNN [Last Updated On: May 9th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 9th, 2020]
- New Studies Add to Evidence that Children May Transmit the Coronavirus - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 9th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 9th, 2020]
- In the Fight to Treat Coronavirus, Your Lungs Are a Battlefield - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 9th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 9th, 2020]
- New evidence indicates coronavirus was infecting people in Europe and the US before the first official cases were reported - CNN [Last Updated On: May 9th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 9th, 2020]
- What kind of face mask will best protect you against coronavirus? - The Guardian [Last Updated On: May 9th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 9th, 2020]
- The Amazon's gateway city is struggling to battle the coronavirus - CNN [Last Updated On: May 9th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 9th, 2020]
- The coronavirus appears to have mutated. What does that mean for contagiousness? - NBC News [Last Updated On: May 9th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 9th, 2020]
- Federal Watchdog Says Coronavirus Whistle-Blower Should Be Reinstated as It Investigates - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 9th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 9th, 2020]
- Do Antibodies Against The Novel Coronavirus Prevent Reinfection? : Shots - Health News - NPR [Last Updated On: May 9th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 9th, 2020]
- Travel Reopenings Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 9th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 9th, 2020]
- Youll Probably Never Know If You Had the Coronavirus in January - The Atlantic [Last Updated On: May 9th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 9th, 2020]
- May 8 evening update: The latest on the coronavirus and Maine - Bangor Daily News [Last Updated On: May 9th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 9th, 2020]
- My Coronavirus Patients Are Struggling to Recover - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2020]
- 10-4: How to Reopen the Economy by Exploiting the Coronaviruss Weak Spot - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2020]
- The Problem With Stories About Dangerous Coronavirus Mutations - The Atlantic [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2020]
- Coronavirus: CSU to have mainly online classes in fall 2020 - Los Angeles Times [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2020]
- Coronavirus in Chicago: A running list of restaurants that have closed - Eater Chicago [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2020]
- The Folly of Trumps Blame-Beijing Coronavirus Strategy - The New Yorker [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2020]
- This Baseball Mascot Was Struck Out By The Coronavirus Pandemic - NPR [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2020]
- I negotiated canceled flights, an unknown carrier and a 'sleep box' to get to my son - CNN [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2020]
- Tony Shalhoub reveals that he and his wife have recovered from coronavirus - CNN [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2020]
- Coronavirus is the ultimate demonstration of the real-world impact of racism - The Guardian [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2020]
- Were All Casualties of Trumps War on Coronavirus Science - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2020]
- Where is the coronavirus in N.J.? Latest map, update on county-by-county cases. (May 12, 2020) - NJ.com [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2020]
- Ranked: The 10 US Cities Best Positioned To Recover From Coronavirus (And The 10 Worst) - Forbes [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2020]
- How we 'Leeeeroy Jenkins'-ed the coronavirus reopening - CNN [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2020]
- About 100 N.Y. Children Treated for Illness Tied to Virus: Live Updates - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2020]
- Coronavirus Live News: Updates and Analysis - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2020]
- Coronavirus updates: 'Disturbing situation' with COVID-associated illness, Cuomo says - ABC News [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2020]
- Fauci warns again about the US reopening as more evidence emerges of virus's early spread - CNN [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2020]
- Coronavirus Vaccine FAQs: How Is It Being Developed? When Will It Be Ready? : Goats and Soda - NPR [Last Updated On: May 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 12th, 2020]
- WHO warns it could take up to 5 years before the coronavirus pandemic is under control - CNBC [Last Updated On: May 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 19th, 2020]
- My Cancer Doesnt Care About the Coronavirus - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 19th, 2020]
- Coronavirus Is Making Young People Very Sick. I Was One of Them. - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 19th, 2020]
- 5 Things To Watch This Week In Politics And Coronavirus - NPR [Last Updated On: May 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 19th, 2020]
- Where New Yorkers Moved to Escape Coronavirus - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 19th, 2020]
- Delaware County Woman Claims She Contracted Coronavirus After Nursing Home Staff Placed Positive Patients In Her Room - CBS Philly [Last Updated On: May 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 19th, 2020]
- F.D.A. Clears Another Coronavirus Testing Kit for Use at Home - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 19th, 2020]
- The coronavirus exposed the US' reliance on India for generic drugs. But that supply chain is ultimately controlled by China - CNN [Last Updated On: May 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 19th, 2020]
- Does Texas really rank high in coronavirus recoveries? - The Texas Tribune [Last Updated On: May 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 19th, 2020]
- U.S. and China Trade Coronavirus Accusations, Sparking Fears of a New Cold War - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 19th, 2020]
- Coronavirus Testing For The Dead? It Can Help Reveal The Scope Of The Pandemic : Shots - Health News - NPR [Last Updated On: May 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 19th, 2020]
- The Pandemics Long-Lasting Effects on Weddings - The Atlantic [Last Updated On: May 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 19th, 2020]
- 'Something we've never seen before': Scientists still trying to understand baffling, unpredictable coronavirus - USA TODAY [Last Updated On: May 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 19th, 2020]
- Illinois Threatens to Fine Defiant Businesses as Reopening Tensions Rise Nationally - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 19th, 2020]
- A.C.L.U. Warns Against Fever-Screening Tools for Coronavirus - The New York Times [Last Updated On: May 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 19th, 2020]
- Coronavirus pandemic in the US: Live updates - CNN International [Last Updated On: May 19th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 19th, 2020]
- Coronavirus response | Your visit to campus will be different this fall but how much? - Champaign/Urbana News-Gazette [Last Updated On: June 21st, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 21st, 2020]
- Lessons on Coronavirus Testing From the Adult Film Industry - The New York Times [Last Updated On: June 21st, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 21st, 2020]
- How to have summer fun amid the coronavirus pandemic - CNBC [Last Updated On: June 21st, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 21st, 2020]
- Putin has a 'disinfection tunnel,' Sweden feels isolated over coronavirus - CNBC [Last Updated On: June 21st, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 21st, 2020]
- Coronavirus: What's happening around the world on Sunday - CBC.ca [Last Updated On: June 21st, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 21st, 2020]
- Flushing the Toilet May Fling Coronavirus Aerosols All Over - The New York Times [Last Updated On: June 21st, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 21st, 2020]