A Chinese device detects the "virus" within 30 minutes

A global rush to rapid tests for "Corona"

An employee takes a sample to be tested with a "Flash 20" machine.

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Rapid tests to detect the emerging corona virus (Covid-19) have sparked a global rush, as US President Donald Trump announced the distribution of 150 million tests throughout the United States, and the World Health Organization promised to provide 120 million examinations to poor countries, but on condition that the necessary funds are found, while A Chinese company invented a device that detects the virus in just 30 minutes.

While the epidemic has killed more than a million people around the world, many health experts have been campaigning for months to use so-called antibody tests, which are an inexpensive method, and their results are quick, and can be obtained in between 15 and 30 minutes.

Although this examination is less accurate than traditional laboratory tests, "BCR", experts assert that with regard to public health, it is more effective, because it allows double numbers of tests to be performed, and thus, in the end, it enables the discovery of much greater numbers of infections.

Also, the rapid examination saves a very valuable time compared to the traditional laboratory examination, as the ability of the infected person to transmit the infection to others is often at its peak at the beginning of the infection period, which is the period in which isolating the infected is considered crucial to limit the spread of the epidemic.

Trump announced that of the 150 million tests provided across the United States, "50 million will be allocated to the most vulnerable communities."

He added that the priority will be for teachers in schools, nursing homes, and universities that have historically served black and indigenous people.

The company "Abbott" is responsible for developing these tests, and at the end of last August, it urgently obtained a license to market this test, the only of its kind even in the United States.

Meanwhile, the World Health Organization, with which the Donald Trump administration has clashed, and its partners, promised to provide 120 million tests to the poorest countries, provided the necessary funding was found.

"We have an agreement, we have the beginning of funding, and now we need the full amount to be able to buy these tests," said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, during a virtual press conference.

This United Nations organization will need 600 million dollars to fulfill its promise, bearing in mind that the cost of one test is five dollars, and it may decrease with the increase in production.

The issue of testing is a central problem in the poorest countries. According to the World Health Organization, rich countries carry out an average of 292 tests per 100,000 people, while low and middle income countries only 61, and low-income countries 14.

In addition, a Chinese company is developing "the fastest machine in the world" for coronavirus tests, and is planning to invade Europe and America.

This machine, called "Flash 20", at a cost of 300,000 yuan (38,000 euros) can handle four samples at the same time, and it detects the presence of the Corona virus or not in the sample within half an hour, and the person who underwent the test receives it directly on his phone.

In China, the airport authorities are using this device to examine travelers coming from abroad, and health authorities have been using it for months to test residents of quarantined neighborhoods.

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The cost of a single test is dollars and may decrease as production increases.

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