Covid19 Breathalyser Test Invented in Australia, Could Replace PCR Test

• An Australian mechanical engineer has developed the world's first Covid-19 breathalyser test device
• The device, called Examin, is 98% accurate and provides Covid-19 test results in less than a minute
• Examin's inventor, Colin Hickey, hopes that Examin gets approved soon so that it can be used to curb community infections

BRISBANE - Colin Hickey, a 71-year-old mechanical engineer from Queensland, Australia, has developed a new form of Covid-19 testing, namely the first Covid-19 breathalyser test in the world.

Hickey named the device Examin. It can determine whether someone is infected with Covid-19 in less than a minute using a QR code and is 98% accurate.

According to MailOnline, a user only needs to blow into the Examin device for five seconds, a far less intrusive method than the PCR swab test. The breathalyser test is also faster and more accurate than a PCR test.

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Plans for the Examin device

Hickey has spent the more significant part of the last two years developing the Examin device and is hopeful that it will have emergency approval in the US and Australia by April. However, Australian universities initially rejected his invention, causing him to seek international approval.

"I'm excited and can't wait to get through regulatory approval and get it in people's hands. That's what's important. It will make a huge difference it could be a world changer," Hickey said.

News24 reports that the Examin device has the potential to decrease community infections, as it allows for many people to be tested in a shorter period, thereby making Covid-19 testing more efficient.

Netizens react to the Covid-19 breathalyser test

@Twit_Subroto believes:

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"It's a good way to test instead of the swab. Well done science."

@DaveyIrish remarked:

"If you didn't test positive before the test...you will after!"

@LogicalHindu_ asked:

"Does it work on asymptomatic cases also?"

@Sangbaran said:

"Game changer."

@KhHoe shared:

"It’s wonderful, easy and fast."

Covid-19: Hospitalisations dwindle, and new cases drop across the country

In other Covid-19 news, Briefly News reported that Gauteng continues to lead the country in new Covid-19 infections, with 38% of new cases being reported in the province with 942 new infections.

However, no other province has reported more than 500 cases in the last 24 hours.

Hospitalisations have also dwindled to fewer than 4 200 cases. The national death toll has risen to 96 000 after nine more people succumbed to the virus.

Source: Briefly News