Unity Health Toronto

Purpose

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV2), is commonly diagnosed by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) to detect viral RNA in patient samples. While pathogen diagnosis is critical, patient outcomes vary depending upon the host’s immune response to the virus. Currently, there are no tests that inform - at the point-of-need - how to risk stratify patients once they test positive for SARS-CoV2. Identifying subgroups of COVID patients that are more likely to require specific therapies, tertiary level care or who are safe to be discharged home with minimal monitoring will significantly improve the ability to plan and prepare while preserving resources when individuals are unlikely to have severe disease. Currently, there are no methods to differentiate early-on an individual who will remain asymptomatic from one who will require advanced treatments.