Saliva testing for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 in children

Clifford, Vanessa; Curtis, Nigel

doi:10.1016/j.cmi.2021.05.046

Cited by 7 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…One of the barriers hindering COVID-19 testing is people’s fear of nasal swabs due to misinformation ( 20 ). In addition, the discomfort brought by nasal swabs may reduce people’s willingness to get tested regularly, especially among children ( 21 , 22 ). With the use of saliva, screening large groups with increased frequency may be more practicable.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparison of Saliva and Midturbinate Swabs for Detection of SARS-CoV-2

et al. 2022

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The findings of this manuscript are increasingly important with new variants that appear to have shorter incubation periods emerging, which may be more prone to detection in saliva before detection in nasal swabs. Therefore, there is an urgent need to provide the science to support the use of a detection method that is highly sensitive and widely acceptable to the public to improve screening rates and early detection.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparison of Saliva and Midturbinate Swabs for Detection of SARS-CoV-2

et al. 2022

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“…Nasal swab specimens are most frequently used in children and have high sensitivity when compared to more invasive nasopharyngeal swabs 10,11 . Collection of saliva offers a less invasive method and is relatively easy to collect, however previous studies in children, comparing nasal and nasopharyngeal swab with saliva and throat swabs, have demonstrated inferior detection for respiratory viruses 12,13 . Adult studies investigating saliva for respiratory virus detection have described lower sensitivity and laboratory challenges due to handling of more viscous samples 14 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A novel anterior nasal swab to detect respiratory viruses: a prospective study of diagnostic sensitivity and specificity

Tosif

Lee

Nguyen

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Detection of respiratory viruses requires testing of the upper respiratory tract to obtain specimens for analysis. However, nasal and throat swabs can cause discomfort and procedural anxiety in children. Respiratory sampling methods which are accurate and less invasive are needed. We aim to determine the sensitivity and specificity of a novel anterior nasal swab (ANS) compared with the combined throat and anterior nasal swab (CTN), the reference standard, for detection of respiratory viruses. Children 5 – 18 years of age presenting to a tertiary paediatric hospital with respiratory symptoms were tested with both swabs in randomised order. Respiratory samples were tested on a respiratory multiplex RT-PCR panel. Viral detections, RT-PCR cycle-threshold values and child/parent/clinician experience of the swab were recorded. There were 157 viral detections from 249 participant CTN swabs. In comparison with the CTN, the overall sensitivity and specificity of ANS for detection of respiratory viruses was 96% (95% CI, 92-98%) and 99% (95% CI, 99-99%), respectively. The ANS was “extremely comfortable”, or only a “little uncomfortable” for 90% of children compared with 48% for CTN. 202 children (84%) rated the ANS as the preferred swab, and 208 (87%)indicated they would prefer ANS for future testing. The ANS has high sensitivity and is comparable to the current standard of care. The high acceptability from the less invasive ANS provides a more comfortable method for respiratory virus testing in children.

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“…Children between the ages of 5-18 years with confirmed COVID-19 in the prior 7 days, or household contacts of these confirmed cases, were invited to participate. 4 Test Methods Parents/guardians followed written instructions for collection of the samples. The CTN samples were collected by swabbing the tonsillar beds and back of the throat for 3-5 seconds, followed by bilateral nasal insertion and rotation 5 times against the nasal wall with a flocked swab (FLOQSwab 551C, Copan, Brescia, Italy).…”

Section: Participantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Collecting samples in children presents challenges due to discomfort and poor compliance that may impact accuracy and parental confidence in testing 2 . Less invasive samples such as saliva can be taken, however studies reflect lower sensitivity in SARS-CoV-2 detection compared with nasal swabs 3,4 . Anterior nasal swabs are acceptable alternatives to nasopharyngeal swabs 5 , and a novel flocked anterior nasal swab (ANS) with features to reduce discomfort has been designed for children 6 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Less invasive SARS-CoV-2 testing for children: A comparison of saliva and a novel Anterior Nasal Swab

Tosif

Lee

Nguyen

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Reducing procedural discomfort for children requiring respiratory testing for SARS-CoV-2 is important in supporting testing strategies for case identification. Alternative sampling methods to nose and throat swabs, which can be self-collected, may reduce laboratory-based testing requirements and provide rapid results for clearance to attend school or hospital settings. The aim of this study was to compare preference and diagnostic sensitivity of a novel anterior nasal swab (ANS), and saliva, with a standard combined nose and throat (CTN) swab. The three samples were self-collected by children aged 5-18 years who had COVID-19 or were a household close contact. Samples were analysed by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) on the Allplex SARS-CoV-2 Assay. Most children and parents preferred the ANS and saliva swab over the CTN swab for future testing. The ANS was highly sensitive (sensitivity 1.000 (95% Confidence Interval (CI) 0.920, 1.000)) for SARS-CoV-2 detection, compared to saliva (sensitivity 0.886, 95% CI 0.754, 0.962). We conclude the novel ANS is a highly sensitive and more comfortable method for SARS-CoV-2 detection when compared to CTN swab.

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Saliva testing for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 in children

Cited by 7 publications

References 20 publications

Comparison of Saliva and Midturbinate Swabs for Detection of SARS-CoV-2

Comparison of Saliva and Midturbinate Swabs for Detection of SARS-CoV-2

A novel anterior nasal swab to detect respiratory viruses: a prospective study of diagnostic sensitivity and specificity

Less invasive SARS-CoV-2 testing for children: A comparison of saliva and a novel Anterior Nasal Swab

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