A NEW genetic test that uses your saliva could predict if you will get severe Covid-19.
The £130 test looks at age, sex, weight and general health, as well as the genes linked to the severity of the virus.
Writing in the the journal Epidemiology and Infection experts said an accurate test to predict risk of severe Covid-19 can inform prioritisation of further vaccine doses to those most at risk.
They highlighted that it could be useful in regions in which vaccination is not widespread enough to provide herd immunity.
The tests work by looking at genes that up your risk of severe Covid.
Experts then combine this with information with underlying health conditions which are known to make people more vulnerable to Covid such as respiratory conditions and high blood pressure.
By using this information the experts were able to predict with 73 per cent accuracy who was most at risk of severe Covid-19.
To take the test all you have to do is spit in a tube and then have the sample sent off to a lab where it will then be tested.
It’s combined with the rest of your medical information and then you will get a prediction of how long you will end up in hospital for if you catch the virus.
The experts said that on an individual level, knowledge of personal risk can empower people to make informed choices about their day-to-day activities, including targeted social distancing in the workplace or other crowded places.
The study found that issues such as poor health, obesity and genetics could mean a man in his 50s is three times more likely to get severe Covid as a woman who is 30 years younger than him and of a normal weight.
Genetic Technologies invented the test, but the samples were not taken from patients who had the Delta variant as the test was carried out before it was the dominant strain in the UK.
The tests were done before January 8 2021 and the experts looked at 2,205 eligible cases with severe Covid-19 and 5,416 patients with non-severe Covid.
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Dr Gillian Dite, a senior biostatistician at the company said: “We were able to pull apart the risk factors, then use them to work out exactly who would be at high risk and who would be at low risk.”
The results of the tests are also based on people who haven’t receicved a coronavirus vaccine.
This could alter the results of the tests as it had been proven that people who are vaccinated are less likely to suffer from severe complications of Covid-19 – including hospitalisation.
The tests are currently available to order in the US and are believed to be ‘coming soon’ to the UK.
Experts had previously designed a calculator which would predict your personal risk of dying from Covid-19.
