Effects of Patient Characteristics on Diagnostic Performance of Self-Collected Samples for SARS-CoV-2 Testing

Emerg Infect Dis. 2021;27(8):2081-2089. doi: 10.3201/eid2708.210667.ABSTRACTWe evaluated the performance of self-collected anterior nasal swab (ANS) and saliva samples compared with healthcare worker-collected nasopharyngeal swab specimens used to test for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). We used the same PCR diagnostic panel to test all self-collected and healthcare worker-collected samples from participants at a public hospital in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Among 1,076 participants, 51.9% were men, 57.1% were >50 years of age, 81.2% were Black (non-Hispanic), and 74.9% reported >1 chronic medical condition. In total, 8.0% tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. Compared with nasopharyngeal swab samples, ANS samples had a sensitivity of 59% and saliva samples a sensitivity of 68%. Among participants tested 3-7 days after symptom onset, ANS samples had a sensitivity of 80% and saliva samples a sensitivity of 85%. Sensitivity varied by specimen type and patient characteristics. These findings can help physicians interpret PCR results for SARS-CoV-2.PMID:34286681 | DOI:10.3201/eid2708.210667

Source: Emerging Infectious Diseases - July 21, 2021 Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Sarah E Smith-Jeffcoat Mitsuki Koh Adam Hoffman Paulina A Rebolledo Marcos C Schechter Halie K Miller Sadia Sleweon Rebecca Rossetti Vyjayanti Kasinathan Talya Shragai Kevin O'Laughlin Catherine C Espinosa George M Khalil AdeSubomi O Adeyemo Anne Moorman Source Type: research