
FDA approves first rapid coronavirus test with 45 minutes detection time - valiant-comma
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-usa-fda-idUSKBN218105
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dang
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22650843](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22650843)

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omosubi
Does anyone else find it a little worrying that the FDA is just rubber
stamping these? Am I justified in my concern or is that what they had been
doing pre-coronavirus but with more lede time? I understand the gravity of the
situation, but it seems like little oversight could lead to worse outcomes

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maxerickson
An established manufacturer of lab tests actually has quite a lot of incentive
to produce tests that work.

I also wonder how different this approval is in terms of meaningful scrutiny
from a normal approval.

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pmoriarty
Here's a test that works in 15 minutes:

[https://www.biospace.com/article/releases/20-20-bioresponse-...](https://www.biospace.com/article/releases/20-20-bioresponse-
to-launch-rapid-coronavirus-test-kits-in-u-s-following-green-light-from-fda/)

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ohazi
That's an antibody detection test, not an RNA sequencing test. You need to
have had the virus for long enough for your body to have started to produce
antibodies against the virus. It's useful for determining whether the cough
you had last week was or wasn't coronavirus, but not so good for early
detection.

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selectodude
Which is useful in its own way. Allows you to stop worrying about getting it
again (assuming it doesn’t mutate).

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pmoriarty
Even if it doesn't mutate it might be possible to get it again due to a
weakening of acquired immunity over time.

This possibility was discussed on episode 591 on _This Week in Virology_.[1] I
wrote up a transcript of the relevant segment here: [2]

[1] -
[http://www.microbe.tv/twiv/twiv-591/](http://www.microbe.tv/twiv/twiv-591/)
about 15 minutes and 50 seconds in to the program

[2] -
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22609136](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22609136)

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LatteLazy
Just to be cynical for a moment, does anyone actually respect the fda this?
Didn't they refuse to use other countries tests, build their own, approve
their own, then discover their one didn't work?

Id be much happier to have an independent scientist say "this seems to work
based on a few tests" then the fda say "we approve this (maybe because we have
to be seen to do a something or maybe because it actually does)"

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SpicyLemonZest
That was the CDC. The FDA doesn't develop tests - their only role here is to
ban people from using tests that have been developed.

