A 60-second COVID-19 breathalyzer test is provisionally approved in Singapore


A new 60-second coronavirus breathalyzer test has been provisionally approved for use alongside antigen rapid tests in Singapore, reported Reuters on Monday.
The test, which was developed by National University of Singapore "spin-off" company Breathonix, can detect COVID-19 infection in under a minute with "more than 90 percent accuracy," a Singapore-based clinical trial found. Users blow into a disposable mouthpiece, where software then "assesses the chemical compounds of the breath" for infection, writes Reuters. Positive tests are later confirmed with a follow-up polymerase chain reaction (PCR) swab test.
The start-up is "now working with the health ministry to run a deployment trial" near the border, Reuters reports. Breathonix is the first breath test to gain provisional clearance in Singapore, and will sell for $3-15.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
These 60-second tests could be "key" in re-opening and revitalizing Singapore's travel sector, which has "slowed to a crawl during the pandemic," writes Bloomberg.
More at Reuters.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.
-
6 elegant Queen Anne Victorian homes
Feature Featuring original diamond-glass doors in New York and a registered historic landmark in Arkansas
-
Starbucks baristas strike over dress code
speed read The new uniform 'puts the burden on baristas' to buy new clothes, said a Starbucks Workers United union delegate
-
US overdose deaths plunged 27% last year
speed read Drug overdose still 'remains the leading cause of death for Americans aged 18-44,' said the CDC
-
Sea lion proves animals can keep a beat
speed read A sea lion named Ronan beat a group of college students in a rhythmic dance-off, says new study
-
Humans heal much slower than other mammals
Speed Read Slower healing may have been an evolutionary trade-off when we shed fur for sweat glands
-
Novel 'bone collector' caterpillar wears its prey
Speed Read Hawaiian scientists discover a carnivorous caterpillar that decorates its shell with the body parts of dead insects
-
Scientists find hint of alien life on distant world
Speed Read NASA's James Webb Space Telescope has detected a possible signature of life on planet K2-18b
-
Katy Perry, Gayle King visit space on Bezos rocket
Speed Read Six well-known women went into lower orbit for 11 minutes
-
Scientists map miles of wiring in mouse brain
Speed Read Researchers have created the 'largest and most detailed wiring diagram of a mammalian brain to date,' said Nature
-
Scientists genetically revive extinct 'dire wolves'
Speed Read A 'de-extinction' company has revived the species made popular by HBO's 'Game of Thrones'
-
Dark energy may not doom the universe, data suggests
Speed Read The dark energy pushing the universe apart appears to be weakening