August 28, 2020

Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis: SARS-CoV-2 Stool Testing and the Potential for Faecal-Oral Transmission

Category: Article Summary

Topic: Transmission

Keywords (Tags): transmission

• A systematic review of stool testing for SARS-CoV-2 (95 studies) showed that 934/2149 (43%) patients tested positive by stool sample or by anal swab, with positive results up to 70 days after symptom onset. Fecal samples of 282/443 (64%) remained positive even after respiratory samples became negative, for a mean of 12.5 days, and viable SARS-CoV-2 was found in 6/17 (35%) patients in whom this was specifically investigated.

van Doorn et al. (Aug 27, 2020). Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis: SARS-CoV-2 Stool Testing and the Potential for Faecal-Oral Transmission. Alimentary Pharmacology & Therapeutics. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32852082