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. 2021 Nov 11;10(10):967-969.
doi: 10.1093/jpids/piab058.

Diagnostic Yield of Saliva for SARS-CoV-2 Molecular Testing in Children

Dithi Banerjee  1   2 , Anjana Sasidharan  1 , Ayah Abdulhamid  1 , Esmeralda M Orosco  1 , Jennifer L Watts  2   3 , Jennifer E Schuster  2   3 , Angela L Myers  2   3 , Gina Weddle  3 , Rangaraj Selvarangan  1   2
Affiliations

Diagnostic Yield of Saliva for SARS-CoV-2 Molecular Testing in Children

Dithi Banerjee et al. J Pediatric Infect Dis Soc. .

Abstract

Pediatric saliva specimen demonstrated high sensitivity (93%) and specificity (96.2%) compared to paired nasopharyngeal swabs (NPS) by Aptima SARS-CoV-2 Assay (Aptima). Viral loads were comparable in both specimen types. Saliva is a safe, noninvasive, and acceptable alternative specimen for SARS-CoV-2 detection in children.

Keywords: SARS-CoV-2; molecular assay; pediatric; saliva.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Ct variation in NPS and saliva specimens for detection of N and RdRp genes with median and interquartile ranges (IQR).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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