Alliance for Pandemic Preparedness

September 3, 2020

Temporal Profile and Determinants of Viral Shedding and of Viral Clearance Confirmation on Nasopharyngeal Swabs from SARS-CoV-2-Positive Subjects: A Population-Based Prospective Cohort Study in Reggio Emilia, Italy

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  • Sixty percent (704/1162) of patients with confirmed COVID-19 did not have detectable SARS-CoV-2 RNA on a subsequent nasopharyngeal sample at a median time of 30 days (IQR 23-40) from diagnosis and 36 days (IQR (28-45) from symptom onset. However, 21% of participants with a negative sample had a subsequent positive sample, suggesting a high false negative rate for confirmation of viral clearance.
  • The time to viral clearance from symptom onset slightly increased with age and disease severity

Mancuso et al. (Sept 2, 2020). Temporal Profile and Determinants of Viral Shedding and of Viral Clearance Confirmation on Nasopharyngeal Swabs from SARS-CoV-2-Positive Subjects: A Population-Based Prospective Cohort Study in Reggio Emilia, Italy. BMJ Open. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2020-040380