Dataset Information

Tiny swabs: nasal swabs integrated into tube caps facilitate large-scale self-collected SARS-CoV-2 testing.

ABSTRACT: The COVID-19 pandemic spurred the development of innovative solutions for specimen collection and molecular detection for large-scale community testing. Among these developments is the RHINOstic nasal swab, a plastic anterior nares swab built into the cap of a standard matrix tube that facilitates automated processing of up to 96 specimens at a time. In a study of unsupervised self-collection utilizing these swabs, we demonstrate comparable analytic performance and shipping stability compared to traditional anterior nares swabs, as well as significant improvements in laboratory processing efficiency. The use of these swabs may allow laboratories to accommodate large numbers of sample collections during periods of high testing demand. Automation-friendly nasal swabs are an important tool for high-throughput processing of samples that may be adopted in response to future respiratory viral pandemics.

SUBMITTER: Pfau B

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10865831 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Tiny swabs: nasal swabs integrated into tube caps facilitate large-scale self-collected SARS-CoV-2 testing.

Pfau Brian B Opsahl Jordan J Crew Ruben R Best Sabrina S Han Peter D PD Heidl Sarah S McDermot Evan E Stone Jeremy J Schwabe-Fry Kristen K MacMillan Melissa P MP O'Hanlon Jessica J Sohlberg Sarah S Acker Zack Z Ehmen Brenna B Englund Janet A JA Konnick Eric Q EQ Chu Helen Y HY Weil Ana A AA Lockwood Christina M CM Starita Lea M LM

Journal of clinical microbiology 20231222 2

The COVID-19 pandemic spurred the development of innovative solutions for specimen collection and molecular detection for large-scale community testing. Among these developments is the <i>RHINOstic</i> nasal swab, a plastic anterior nares swab built into the cap of a standard matrix tube that facilitates automated processing of up to 96 specimens at a time. In a study of unsupervised self-collection utilizing these swabs, we demonstrate comparable analytic performance and shipping stability comp ...[more]

PMID: 38131692

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Project description:ImportanceDespite the expansion of SARS-CoV-2 testing, available tests have not received Emergency Use Authorization for performance with self-collected anterior nares (nasal) swabs from children younger than 14 years because the effect of pediatric self-swabbing on SARS-CoV-2 test sensitivity is unknown.ObjectiveTo characterize the ability of school-aged children to self-collect nasal swabs for SARS-CoV-2 testing compared with collection by health care workers.Design, setting, and participantsCross-sectional study of 197 symptomatic children and adolescents aged 4 to 14 years old. Individuals were recruited based on results of testing in the Children's Healthcare of Atlanta system from July to August 2021.ExposuresChildren and adolescents were given instructional material consisting of a short instructional video and a handout with written and visual steps for self-swab collection. Participants first provided a self-collected nasal swab. Health care workers then collected a second specimen.Main outcomes and measuresThe primary outcome was SARS-CoV-2 detection and relative quantitation by cycle threshold (Ct) in self- vs health care worker-collected nasal swabs when tested with a real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction test with Emergency Use Authorization.ResultsAmong the study participants, 108 of 194 (55.7%) were male and the median age was 9 years (IQR, 6-11). Of the 196 participants, 87 (44.4%) tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 and 105 (53.6%) tested negative by both self- and health care worker-collected swabs. Two children tested positive by self- or health care worker-collected swab alone; 1 child had an invalid health care worker swab. Compared with health care worker-collected swabs, self-collected swabs had 97.8% (95% CI, 94.7%-100.0%) and 98.1% (95% CI, 95.6%-100.0%) positive and negative percent agreement, respectively, and SARS-CoV-2 Ct values did not differ significantly between groups (mean [SD] Ct, self-swab: 26.7 [5.4] vs health care worker swab: 26.3 [6.0]; P = .65).Conclusions and relevanceAfter hearing and seeing simple instructional materials, children and adolescents aged 4 to 14 years self-collected nasal swabs that closely agreed on SARS-CoV-2 detection with swabs collected by health care workers.

Dataset Information

Tiny swabs: nasal swabs integrated into tube caps facilitate large-scale self-collected SARS-CoV-2 testing.

Publications

Tiny swabs: nasal swabs integrated into tube caps facilitate large-scale self-collected SARS-CoV-2 testing.

Similar Datasets

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