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Topic: Testing and Treatment
September 18, 2020
Evaluation of Performance of Two SARS-CoV-2 Rapid IgM-IgG Combined Antibody Tests on Capillary Whole Blood Samples from the Fingertip
Two point-of-care serology tests utilizing capillary whole blood samples from a finger prick (COVID-PRESTO and COVID-DUO) had 100% sensitivity and 100% specificity for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies when administered at least 15 days after symptom onset. Sensitivity was calculated among patients who tested positive by PCR (n=238) and specificity was calculated among patients negative by PCR (n=143)….
Corticosteroid Therapy Is Associated with the Delay of SARS-CoV-2 Clearance in COVID-19 Patients
Patients with COVID-19 who received corticosteroids experienced longer time to viral clearance (median 18 days vs 16 days, p<0.001) and hospitalization (median 17 days vs 15 days, p=0.023), in a retrospective multi-center study in China (n=309). Huang et al. (Sept 15, 2020). Corticosteroid Therapy Is Associated with the Delay of SARS-CoV-2 Clearance in COVID-19 Patients….
Activate: Randomized Clinical Trial of BCG Vaccination against Infection in the Elderly
A double-blind randomized trial (n=198) of BCG vaccination of elderly patients to protect against subsequent infections (September 2017 through August 2019) found that BCG vaccination increased the time to first infection (median 16 weeks vs 11 weeks) and reduced the incidence of new infections (25% vs 42%). Most of the protection was against respiratory tract…
Colchicine to Weather the Cytokine Storm in Hospitalized Patients with COVID-19
A propensity score matched cohort study (n=303) found that, compared to patients receiving standard of care, patients receiving colchicine, an anti-inflammatory drug commonly used to prevent or treat gout, had a higher odds of being discharged at 28 days (OR=5.0, 95%CI: 1.25-20.1) and had lower odds of dying at 28 days (OR=0.2, 95% CI: 0.05-0.80)….
Assessing a Novel, Lab-Free, Point-of-Care Test for SARS-CoV-2 (CovidNudge): A Diagnostic Accuracy Study
The CovidNudge test, a rapid point-of-care real-time PCR test requiring no laboratory handling or sample pre-processing, had an overall sensitivity and specificity of 94% (95% CI: 86-98%) and 100% (95% CI: 99-100%), respectively, when compared against standard laboratory PCR in paired samples (n=386) from health workers and hospitalized patients. Gibani et al. (Sept 17, 2020)….
September 17, 2020
Change in Antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 Over 60 Days Among Health Care Personnel in Nashville, Tennessee
Anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody levels declined over 60 days among all 19 health care personnel in Tennessee who had anti–SARS-CoV-2 antibodies at baseline. In 11 (58%), antibody levels declined substantially enough that they tested negative at 60 days, while 8 (42%) remained seropositive after 60 days. The authors conclude that cross-sectional seroprevalence studies may underestimate rates of…
Self-Collected Saline Gargle Samples as an Alternative to Healthcare Worker Collected Nasopharyngeal Swabs for COVID-19 Diagnosis in Outpatients
[Pre-print, not peer reviewed] Self-collected saline mouth rinse/gargle samples and saliva samples had a sensitivity of 98% (39/40) and 79% (26/33), respectively, compared to healthcare worker (HCW)-collected nasopharyngeal swab samples among 40 people with SARS-CoV-2. Both types of self-collected samples showed stable viral RNA detection after 2 days of storage at room temperature and demonstrated…
September 15, 2020
SARS-CoV-2 Recurrent RNA Positivity after Recovering from Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19): A Meta-Analysis
A systematic review found that the estimated cumulative proportion of recurrent RNA positivity in recovered COVID-19 patients was 12% (95% CI: 12-13%), ranging from 7-23% across studies and with follow-up testing between 1 and 60 days. Mattiuzzi et al. (Sept 7, 2020). SARS-CoV-2 Recurrent RNA Positivity after Recovering from Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19): A Meta-Analysis….
Pooled Testing for Surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 in Asymptomatic Individuals
A 10-specimen manual pooling algorithm was the optimal pool size for surveillance of asymptomatic healthcare workers. Das et al. found that pool sizes up to 10 were able to detect positive samples with a threshold of cycle time (Ct) <36. An evaluation of this approach included 700 pools (7,000 total samples) and found eight positive…
Characteristics of COVID-19 in Homeless Shelters
Contact tracing events (“surge testing”) identified a much larger proportion of the positive SARS-CoV-2 cases among residents and staff in homeless shelters across King County (Washington State) compared to routine surveillance. Among 29 SARS-CoV-2 positive cases identified from 1,434 encounters of shelter residents and staff in homeless shelters, 72% of cases were detected during “surge…
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