Evaluating Saliva Sampling with Reverse Transcription Loop-mediated Isothermal Amplification to Improve Access to SARS-CoV-2 Diagnosis in Low-Resource Settings.

ABSTRACT: Standard diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 by nasopharyngeal swab (NPS) and real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (PCR) requires a sophisticated laboratory, skilled staff, and expensive reagents that are difficult to establish and maintain in isolated, low-resource settings. In the remote setting of tropical Sumba Island, eastern Indonesia, we evaluated alternative sampling with fresh saliva (FS) and testing with colorimetric loop-medicated isothermal amplification (LAMP). Between August 2020 and May 2021, we enrolled 159 patients with suspected SARS-CoV-2 infection, of whom 75 (47%) had a positive PCR on NPS (median cycle threshold [Ct] value: 27.6, interquartile range: 12.5-37.6). PCR on FS had a sensitivity of 72.5% (50/69, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 60.4-82.5) and a specif

SUBMITTER: Suwarti S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9393441 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature