Today, you will not surprise anyone with express coronavirus tests. They are made at airports, offering to get the result in 5 minutes, and sold in pharmacies, allowing testing at home independently. Slightly more interest is the Apple Watch, which taught how to diagnose COVID-19 based on heart rate changes. Smartwatches generally do this non-invasively, without interacting with the patient’s biomaterial. However, this method is not considered legal, unlike the new method of testing using the iPhone.
iPhone has learned to detect COVID-19 using a special application. True, with several reservations
Kroger Health, a network of American pharmacies and clinics, has developed its own COVID-19 test, which involves using an iPhone. Unlike the technique used by the Apple Watch, the Kroger Health test does not rely on associated metrics but uses the patient’s biomaterial.
How to identify COVID-19 using an iPhone?
This is how the whole process looks like:
- The patient takes (or asks for someone) a swab from the throat and nose;
- Places a biomaterial sampling agent in a bottle with a liquid;
- Then it would be best if you dropped this liquid onto a special tester;
- After 15-30 minutes, you need to scan the tester with the iPhone camera.
The test developers claim that the iPhone camera is necessary here, as it uses artificial intelligence technologies to determine the infection. One strip means the patient is infected with COVID-19; no stripes means the patient is healthy. He will also be offered accompanying information with recommendations on how to behave depending on the test results.
After 15 minutes, the application will prompt the patient to scan the express test. It uses patented artificial intelligence-based scanning technology to deliver accurate results in seconds and eliminate test misinterpretation. The entire process is protected with all safety requirements, so the patient does not have to worry about the erroneous result and the leakage of his data, explained Colleen Lindholz, President of Kroger Health.
The most accurate COVID-19 test
According to Kroger Health, COVID-19 detection accuracy is 93%. This is a fairly high figure, and it is higher than that of classical PCR tests, so, despite the seeming primitiveness of the home testing technique, it is optimal for detecting infection. Another thing is that so far, the test using the iPhone is not officially certified. Still, Kroger Health is actively engaged in this, preparing to obtain permission to distribute its new product.
If Kroger Health’s infestation detection method does indeed deliver 93% accuracy, that’s an excellent result. Another thing is that the iPhone is basically not needed there. If you look closely at the test kit photographs, you will see that the tester has the same markings that patients are encouraged to view on their smartphone screen. Yes, they are less informative than a text description and recommendations for further behaviour, but in general, they are sufficient to understand whether a person is infected or not.
So Kroger Health’s new product is more of a marketing ploy that will allow the company to attract fans of avid iPhone users. After all, you must admit that it is much more interesting to watch the result on a smartphone than on a piece of plastic that looks like a pregnancy test. From this point of view, we are not even talking about any manufacturability. How different is the definition of COVID-19 using Apple Watch. But since the watch is repelled by changes in heart rate and does not use biomaterial, doctors refuse to accept its results. But the Kroger Health test will be accepted quite willingly. The main thing is not to tell them that your iPhone took part in the testing.