PropertyValue
?:abstract
  • Introduction Nasopharyngeal (NP) swab is an invasive procedure that is difficult to perform in pediatric cases and those with special needs. On the other hand, saliva has been a proposed sample given the ease of collection, comfort and the ability to self-collect. The research project aims to study the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in the saliva of suspected COVID-19 patients in comparison to its presence in NP swabs. Methodology A cross-sectional study was conducted in October 2020 in COVID19 clinic in the Bahrain Defense Force Hospital. The study compared the presence of SARS-CoV2 by PCR in saliva samples to nasopharyngeal samples. COVID-19 Clinic tests symptomatic, staff, close contacts and pre-operation patients. Results The saliva PCR has shown a sensitivity of 72.9% (95% CI: 58.2% - 84.7%) and a specificity of 98.8% (95% CI: 97.8% - 99.4%). The PPV was 74.5% (95% CI 59.7% to 86.1%) and the NPV was 98.6% (95% CI 97.7% to 99.3%). Kappa coefficient of agreement between saliva and NP was 0.723 (95% CI 0.62 to 0.82, p<0.001). Moreover, when restricting cases to symptomatic only, the sensitivity of saliva increased to 86.7% (95% CI 59.5% to 98.3%) while specificity remained high at 97.2%. Conclusion The findings of the study suggest that saliva samples have the potential to be used as a screening tool for SARS-CoV-2, especially in symptomatic individuals. This is especially important when it is difficult to collect NP samples. Saliva samples are however at risk of producing more false negative tests.
is ?:annotates of
?:creator
?:doi
?:doi
  • 10.1101/2020.12.07.20244681
?:license
  • medrxiv
?:pdf_json_files
  • document_parses/pdf_json/7ec68d6d3d99811ba7a2dd86c26aaa8e97ca9d2b.json
?:publication_isRelatedTo_Disease
?:sha_id
?:source
  • MedRxiv; WHO
?:title
  • Diagnostic and monitoring utilities of saliva for SARS-CoV-2
?:type
?:year
  • 2020-12-07

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