Covid-19, dogs trained to recognize sick people by sweat

The first research project for the detection of the disease with dogs is underway. over 1000 patients will be involved

Rome, 29 March 2021 - Can a trained dog recognize a person positive for Covid-19 using only his sense of smell? This is the question that the first study developed within a university hospital with the training of dogs intended for the rapid screening of individuals potentially affected by Covid-19 symptomatic and asymptomatic.

The research project was started in Rome at the Drive-in Campus testing of the Campus Bio-Medico University Hospital and will be carried out for the first time in the world on a significant statistical sample of over 1000 patients ofUniversità Campus Bio-Medico di Roma.

The efficiency of the dog's sense of smell will be tested with molecular tests for the diagnosis of Covid-19. The procedures will allow the traceability of the work and will be carried out in complete safety for the operator, for the dog and from a scientific point of view.

Thanks to the collaboration with NGS Srl, engaged in the use of trained dogs for anti-explosive safety in emergencies and major events, from April to June 2021 the dog units will be specially trained, by professionals active in the fields of safety & security, in recognizing the presence of Covid-19 in the sweat of the patients who go to the Drive-in Campus test every day Campus Bio-Medico University Hospital, in via Regdo Scodro 42 to perform the swab.

After a first phase of experimentation lasting 6-8 weeks in which dogs will be prepared for the recognition of Covid-19 through specific techniques borrowed from training for explosives, the project will see another four to six weeks of experimentation on volunteers thanks to the collaboration of patients who swab the Drive-in Campus test. Will be collected a sample of over 1000 patients.

Inside a container of about 40 square meters dedicated to the project, the dog, in full comfort and safety, he will smell the samples containing patient sweat. The animal will never come into direct contact with the biological substance. The patient will perform a self-collection of sweat with a gauze which will then be placed in an anonymous container with an identification number corresponding to the patient himself. The dog operators they will submit the sample to the dog who thanks to the training received and his extraordinary nose, will give his response on the presence of Covid-19 in seconds. The operator will record the test result as positive or negative on a special log.

In parallel the Polyclinic analysis laboratory will perform the molecular test of the nasopharyngeal swab of the same patient and will record the results on a database where patients will be anonymised. The same sample will be analyzed by an electronic sensor created by the Faculty of Engineering of theUniversità Campus Bio-Medico di Roma developed by the Electronics for Sensory Systems Unit and already tested in other scientific projects.

To coordinate the project the professor Silvia Angeletti, director of the Analysis Laboratory Unit of the Campus Bio-Medico University Hospital"Our study represents the first example of a collaboration between laboratory research and field experimentation. Thanks to the possibilities offered simultaneously by the activity of the Drive-in Campus test and the Analysis Laboratory we can work directly with the dogs and scientifically verify our hypotheses".

“We are training our dogs to recognize the presence of Covid-19 in samples collected at the Covid Center - Explains Maximilian Macera, managing director of NGS - Inside the container, the dog will be given some boxes specially designed for the Campus Bio-Medico University Hospital project, inside which there will be the samples to be processed. Everything will come after an initial conditioning phase designed to ensure maximum safety for operators and dogs working with biological material. To practice developing sensitivity to the virus, the dog examines the canisters and when it detects the presence of Covid-19, it will report it precisely but discreetly and will receive a prize ".

“The experiment we are conducting is very important from the point of view of epidemiology and public health - has explained Massimo Ciccozzi, molecular epidemiologist ofUniversità Campus Bio-Medico di Roma and promoter of the project - Just think of the use that can be made of these dogs in major events, concerts and football matches, avoiding costly screening tests and above all on detection times. All this, combined with the experimentation of sensor technologies developed at the Faculty of Engineering, will represent a great resource for the future towards a return to normality".

PROSPECTS OF THE PROJECT

Looking ahead, if the project is successful, it will be possible to use trained dogs in urban contexts for anti Covid-19 screening activities within big events, at the entrance of movies, stadiums and at the boarding gates of the airports with the aim of restarting social life even in those areas where a multitude of people meet. The use of dogs will have several advantages: the speeding up access operations to places of aggregation, the reduction of expenses resulting from the use of tampons and a better organization and effectiveness of controls.

A trained dog can employ about 10 seconds to recognize a case of positivity, a quick swab takes 20-30 minutes to deliver a result and at least 24 hours the molecular swab. As for the Costs, a molecular buffer varies from 60 150 to EUR, a quick one from 20€ to 60€ approximately while a trained dog has a cost that decreases progressively as the number of subjects examined increases. Each dog can work 1-2 hour shifts per day. In the project they will be employed up to 6 dogs. To date it does not appear that dogs can be involved in the transmission or spread of the Sars-Cov-2 virus.

THE USE OF DETECTION DOGS

Detection dogs are employed in numerous fields today. In the health sector, for example, the detection of viral or bacterial infections is carried out: the rate of exact reports is between 77 and 92,6 percent. The World Health Organization sets the threshold for the reliability of diagnostic tests for the detection of the Clostridium bacterium at 75 percent.

So far, two laboratory studies have been carried out in Europe for the detection of Covid-19 with trained dogs: The first, created by the Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire d'Alfort and the Université Paris Est obtained an exact detection rate between 83 and 100 percent with the use of samples of sweat. The second, from the Universities of Hanover and Hamburg and the Central Institute of Medical Service of the German Armed Forces, obtained an average accurate detection rate of 94 per cent, using saliva samples.

THE DRIVE ON CAMPUS TEST

Il Drive-in Campus testing is located in Via Regdo Scodro, 42 (Rome, Trigoria area) TIMETABLES: dal Monday to Friday, 9.00-16.00 - Saturday and Sunday, 9.00-14.00

To carry out the swab, you need to book the time slot online and show up with your health card. Each reservation is valid for one person only. To book, visit the web page: https://www.policlinicocampusbiomedico.it/news/al-via-il-drive-in-campus-test