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THE MORE YOU KNOW - PCR Cycle Thresholds (CTs)
1) PCR test is "gold standard" Covid test
2) PCR test "amplifies tiny amounts of DNA material to become large enough to be analyzed"
3) PCR test "amplifies" in multiple "passes" or "cycles" over the same original test sample
1) PCR test is "gold standard" Covid test
2) PCR test "amplifies tiny amounts of DNA material to become large enough to be analyzed"
3) PCR test "amplifies" in multiple "passes" or "cycles" over the same original test sample
4) The test has a SETTING called "Cycle Threshold" (CT)
5) The CT Setting determines how much to "amplify" the sample
6) If CT is set too high the test become unreliable with many "false-positive" results
7) CDC recommends this limit is 33 cycles. (Some say 30 cycles is limit)
5) The CT Setting determines how much to "amplify" the sample
6) If CT is set too high the test become unreliable with many "false-positive" results
7) CDC recommends this limit is 33 cycles. (Some say 30 cycles is limit)
8) Many governments are setting the CT to 40 (or more), well above the recommended setting for accuracy.
WHY would governments want to over-amplify samples, creating many false-positive "cases"?
WHY aren't the CT numbers reported along with Covid "cases" from those tests?
WHY would governments want to over-amplify samples, creating many false-positive "cases"?
WHY aren't the CT numbers reported along with Covid "cases" from those tests?
Here's the sauce, and additional reading for those very interested in PCR Cycle Thresholds:
"Cycle threshold as a measure of infectivity from Covid-19 PCR tests"
…https://www.africanjournalofrespiratorymedicine.com/articles/cycle-threshold-as-a-measure-of-infectivity-fromcovid19-pcr-tests.pdf
"Cycle threshold as a measure of infectivity from Covid-19 PCR tests"
…https://www.africanjournalofrespiratorymedicine.com/articles/cycle-threshold-as-a-measure-of-infectivity-fromcovid19-pcr-tests.pdf
"Are you infectious if you have a positive PCR test result for COVID-19?" https://www.cebm.net/covid-19/infectious-positive-pcr-test-result-covid-19/
"Your Coronavirus Test Is Positive. Maybe It Shouldn’t Be." https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/29/health/coronavirus-testing.html
"To Interpret the SARS-CoV-2 Test, Consider the Cycle Threshold Value"
https://academic.oup.com/cid/article/71/16/2252/5841456
https://academic.oup.com/cid/article/71/16/2252/5841456
"11/13/2020: Lab Update: CDC Updates FAQs to Include Information on Cycle Threshold Values"
https://www.cdc.gov/csels/dls/locs/2020/cdc_updates_faqs_to_include_info_on_cycle_threshold_values.html
https://www.cdc.gov/csels/dls/locs/2020/cdc_updates_faqs_to_include_info_on_cycle_threshold_values.html
"Was my PCR test result a false positive?"
https://medical.mit.edu/covid-19-updates/2020/11/pcr-test-result
https://medical.mit.edu/covid-19-updates/2020/11/pcr-test-result
