So I do not mean a covid test where it is clear what pathogen to look for. More like:
“Hey lab, here is a sample of a patient that feels bad. Please find out what pathogen is inside of it.”
How does it work? And how does it work so fast that they usually return the results within 1 or 2 days?
In: 6
Two ways.
The original method is using a culture medium (usually yummy jelly appropriate for either bacteria or virus or fungi to grow in). Smear the sample of interest onto it, see what grows, you have to dilute the sample sometimes as there can be multiple different bacteria growing. Depending on how much pathogen lives in the sample and what type of pathogen, the sample can grow quickly or slowly.
The other method is to run PCR or antigen tests to against the pathogens you’re interested in looking for and this can be done as a panel where you run tests for pathogen A B C D E as a best guess.
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