According to a Greek-American study published in the scientific journal Frontiers in Public Health, at least 2,000 deaths and 20,000 hospitalizations were avoided in Greece between April and December 2021 thanks to self-diagnosis.
From the Greek side, writes CNN Greece, the study involved the Laboratory of Medical Epidemiology and Medical Statistics ΕΚΠΑ and ΕΟΔΥ. Two American universities also participated – the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Southern California. Associate Professor of the Department of Hygiene and Epidemiology, clinical virologist Gikas Mayorkinis reported this to the FM agency. He clarified that the work used publicly available data and the scientists did not have any confidential information about specific people. Scientist says:
“From April 4 to December 15, 2021, approximately 60 million self-tests were available. Some 8 million people took part in the process, and at the peak of the program, 20% of the population took two self-tests in one week.”
Mathematical models and simulations were used to calculate the impact of self-testing on Covid-19 hospitalizations and deaths, Mr Mayorkinis said:
“In addition to preventing a significant number of deaths, we now show that self-testing can be a very important public health tool, especially in situations such as pandemics. Many people now use self-testing for influenza, as well as other illnesses, and a hugely important legacy of the pandemic is that people now know how to self-test and quickly diagnose their health conditions.”
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