New research finds similar levels of the virus in people who test positive with and without symptoms.
The study looked at testing data from 32,299 residents and staff members at 366 skilled nursing facilities, nursing homes and assisted living facilities across Massachusetts.
PCR tests work by detecting tiny bits of the virus' genetic material; the more virus that is present, the easier it is for the test to detect it. If levels of the virus are similar in people regardless of symptoms, the test should be equally effective. The report"extends smaller previous ones as to the similarity in viral load in people without COVID-19 symptoms as compared with those having symptoms," said Topol, who wasn't involved with the new research.
Peter Beernink, an associate professor of infectious disease at the University of California, San Francisco, said the study was one of the more comprehensive examinations of viral load that he has seen, given the number of cases and the random sampling involved in the data collection.
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