Anicet Mbida 06:52, October 04, 2022
Anicet Mbida delivers to us every morning what is best in terms of innovation.
This Tuesday, he is interested in a new tool in the fight against Covid, an application capable of detecting it just by coughing in front of his phone.
At a time when we are starting to talk about the eighth wave, a new tool is emerging: an application capable of detecting Covid-19 by coughing in front of your phone. It is serious ?
That's exactly the question I asked myself when I first heard about it.
It was last spring.
I admit that at the time, I was rather skeptical (there are so many charlatans around the Covid).
But this application has just been bought 120 million euros by Pfizer.
Pfizer is not just anyone.
He is a giant in the sector and he knows a little bit about Covid since he is the first to have released a vaccine.
So I took a closer look.
And it turns out that the application was developed by an Australian laboratory that has been working for ten years to detect respiratory diseases only with the sound of coughing.
The first version targeted pneumonia, bronchiolitis and asthma.
And it turns out that since then, they have adapted it to the Covid.
And it works, is it really effective?
Apparently yes.
They have already done several clinical studies where they have demonstrated a reliability of more than 90%.
So better than an antigen test.
With the advantage of having instant results, no logistics, no waste and above all, no swab to enter his nose to the brain.
Of course, that changes everything.
This would allow systematic screenings, in seconds, before entering public places, hospitals, events, etc.
Ditto for the self-tests.
If you just cough in front of your phone, you will be much more inclined to test yourself regularly.
So this app could really be a game changer.
Do we know what Pfizer will do with it?
We don't have the details yet.
They simply said they would invest to develop the technology and work with regulators around the world to make it available as soon as possible.
In what form ?
We do not know anything.
We all dream of a free application accessible to all.
But we must not forget that Pfizer remains a commercial enterprise.
They paid 120 million to acquire the technology.
Ten years of research behind it.
So I imagine that they will first do everything to make it profitable.