Updated preprint: linking COVID-19 tests to UK Biobank

My bugbank colleagues and I have posted a substantially revised preprint describing our work linking COVID-19 test results between Public Health England's microbiology database SGSS and UK Biobank, the first data from which were released on Friday.

I recommend reading this short paper for anyone interpreting these test results, because it describes the scientific rationale, the data limitations, and the basic epidemiological characteristics of the COVID-19 positive UK Biobank cohort.

Armstrong, J., Rudkin, J. K., Allen, N., Crook, D. W., Wilson, D. J., Wyllie, D. H. and A.-M. O'Connell (2020)
Dynamic linkage of COVID-19 test results between Public Health's Second Generation Surveillance System and UK Biobank
Figshare doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.12091455 (abstract preprint)

UK Biobank - PHE microbe database linkage paper

Uploaded this week on medRxiv, the first preprint describing periodic linkage between Public Health England's microbiology database - the second generation surveillance system, SGSS - and UK Biobank. Note that a second paper is in preparation describing frequent - up to daily - linkage.

Microbial isolation in English participants in the UK Biobank cohort: comparison with the general population
Hilton, B., Wilson, D. J., O'Connell A.-M., Ironmonger, D., Rudkin, J. K, Allen, N. and D. Wyllie (2020)
medRxiv doi:10.1101/2020.03.18.20038281 (abstract preprint)