Alliance for Pandemic Preparedness

June 3, 2020

Clearance and Persistence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in COVID-19 Patients

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  • Carmo et al. found that most patients continue to test positive for SARS-CoV-2 for over two weeks. The minimum time from first positive to first negative SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR test result was 7 days, while some patients continued to test positive for 51 days following their first positive test result.  
  • Viral RNA persistence was not associated with severity of disease, but may be associated with a weaker immune response. 

Carmo et al. (June 2, 2020). Clearance and Persistence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in COVID-19 Patients. Journal of Medical Virology. https://doi.org/10.1002/jmv.26103