1. Asymptomatic cases of the novel coronavirus are making it a lot harder to trace the virus and curb its spread. In June, researchers estimated that 40-45% of all COVID-19 cases are asymptomatic.
2. A researcher team at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology published a study where the researchers processed speech recordings of those infected with Covid-19.
3. The study found evidence of vocal biomarkers or indicators of the virus. These biomarkers surface due to the disruptions caused by the virus in the movement of muscles across the respiratory, laryngeal, and articulatory system.
4. Difficulty in breathing is among the common Covid-19 symptoms. The inflammation in the respiratory system affects the intensity with which air is exhaled when a person talks. Therefore, the air interacts with multiple other inflamed muscles until the speech is produced.
5. This phenomenon impacts the loudness, pitch, steadiness, and resonance of the voice. From these biomarkers, one can determine whether a person is infected with the virus or not.
6. While the results seem compelling, researchers believe that more data will have to be collected before coming to a final conclusion.
