A MASK FOR ALL SEASONS
Diagnosis of SARS COVID-2 virus through nasal and throat swab is a ticklish business for the patient and a danger zone for the sampler. Sneezing/coughing during sampling through swab irritation can release millions of viral particles that can infect the sampler. Which is why samplers take often poor quality swabs from a distance to protect themselves. This leads to a false negative test result allowing an infectious patient several opportunities to infect others. Scientific reports reveal that undetected infectious patient can infect up to 400 people. This becomes more dangerous since over 70–80% of infected cases in India are reported to be asymptomatic and resilient to suspicion and diagnosis.
FMR a renowned medical and public health research organisation working in infectious disease since 1974, is developing a gelatin lined mask based method to capture aerosols from COVID 19 suspects with a period of 5–7 minutes comfortably with the patient talking coughing/surging. The gelatin is peeled off and processed for detection in the lab. This way far more viruses are captured for detection with utmost safety of the sampler and no discomfort to the patient. The BMC feels that the method would greatly enhance the COVID control measures in Mumbai through strengthening of diagnosis and would like us to generate scientific evidence for this at the earliest.
The Foundation a Public Trust, has invested Rs.1 million of its own funds to purchase chemicals and protective clothing for its researchers and requires an additional Rs. 8,00,000 to complete rigorous testing of at least 30 confirmed COVID patients and 30 normal healthy individuals. Given the interest and urgency expressed by the Municipal Corporation, we have initiated the study at Kasturba Hospital. Your support urgently needed at this juncture, would be timely and helpful in achieving correct and early diagnosis saving lives of both health workers and patients, and more effective control of COVID.
If successful, we would propose to introduce this mask widely for testing through mass production which would make the test much cheaper and therefore more affordable. Efforts are also being made to make this a Point of Care testing method through application of a more cutting edge technology CRISPR. Eventually such a test can be applicable not only to Covid but several other respiratory infections which could exist together in a patient without being detected.
Your contribution therefore would have far more than just direct impact for COVID-19.
Donations can be sent to The Foundation for Medical Research (Email : fmr@fmrindia.org) to our bank as per the details given below:
Name : The Foundation for Medical Research
Account №004910100032505
Bank — Bank of India
Branch — Worli Naka
IFSC Code BKID0000049
Donations are exempt u/s 35 (1) (ii) of the Income Tax Act.
