Testing self-collected saliva samples could offer an easy, quick and effective mass testing approach for detecting asymptomatic Covid-19 cases, according to a study.
The research, published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases, tested and compared the nasopharyngeal swabs and saliva samples of almost 2,000 people in Japan who did not have Covid-19 symptoms.
“Rapid detection of asymptomatic infected individuals will be critical for preventing Covid-19 outbreaks within communities and hospitals,” said Takanori Teshima from Hokkaido University in Japan.
Two different virus amplification tests were performed on most of the samples: the widely available PCR test, and the less commonly used but faster and more portable RT-LAMP test.
The number of positive and negative results in all samples was very similar, with the nasopharyngeal swabs and saliva samples able to…