key: cord-0794187-mp5umrxy
authors: Alqutaibi, Ahmed Yaseen; Saeed, Musab Hameed; Aboalrejal, Afaf Noman
title: Saliva may be considered as reliable tool for diagnosis of COVID-19 when compared to nasopharynx or throat swabs
date: 2021-02-05
journal: J Evid Based Dent Pract
DOI: 10.1016/j.jebdp.2021.101530
sha: 8964d268fc9279722d66a8cc2fca4b30a00ea272
doc_id: 794187
cord_uid: mp5umrxy

ARTICLE TITLE AND BIBLIOGRAPHIC INFORMATION Saliva in the Diagnosis of COVID-19: A Review and New Research Directions. Fernandes LL, Pacheco VB, Borges L et al. Journal of Dental Research. 2020. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022034520960070. SOURCE OF FUNDING Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein and Universidade Cruzeiro do Sul, São Paulo, Brazil. The authors have no actual or potential conflicts of interest. TYPE OF STUDY/DESIGN Systematic review.

The detection of SARS-CoV-2 in the saliva of patients with COVID-19 has been confirmed, with diagnostic performance comparable to the current standards (nasopharyngeal and throat swabs), however, there is a lack of understanding of salivary biomolecules that could be used for salivary diagnostics in the context of COVID-19 infection.

Because of the exponential growth in the number of COVID-19 cases, the World Health Organization has declared a global public health emergency. 1 Globally, over 98,million cases with close to 2.1 million deaths have been confirmed as of 27th of January 2021. SARS-CoV-2 transmission is mainly dependent on respiratory droplets spontaneously formed by talking and coughing. 2 The primary method of containing the COVID-19 pandemic relies on testing as many persons as possible to avoid the possibility of other persons and health care providers being infected, particularly by asymptomatic people, who account for about 79% of the contagion. 3 Although COVID-19 testing is expected to be widely accessible, only part of the population has rapid testing access. Available COVID-19 tests are technically complex and costly, and some Diagnostic Accuracy Studies (STARD) statement was developed. STARD provides a list of essential items that writers, reviewers, and readers may use as a checklist to ensure that the correct information is included in a diagnostic accuracy study report. 6 In addition to the cost savings and noninvasive nature, the use of saliva serves as an excellent alternative sample in the diagnosis of respiratory virus infections, particularly for extensive population-level screenings. As health professionals are not required for the collection, it will reduce the risk of hospital transmission to health care workers and other patients. Additionally, the use of salivary samples eliminates the waiting time; therefore, the results would be available in a shorter time, which is essential during a pandemic.

Dental practitioners are at significant risk of transmitting airborne infectious diseases via persistent exposures to aerosols and possible infectious droplets in their environments.

Chairside screening for COVID-19 in saliva will serve as a brilliant method to protect them.

Following the infection control guidelines and using personal protective equipment is vitally important, and all that can be confidently recommended for dental practitioners and dental healthcare workers. Additional measures suggested in the dental clinic include effective use of high-volume suction devices, rubber dam isolation, adjunct chemotherapeutic agents mouth J o u r n a l P r e -p r o o f rinse with 0.2% povidone-iodine or 0.5-1% hydrogen peroxide may also be utilised preoperatively to reduce the viral load in the oral cavity. 7, 8 The range of COVID-19 saliva tests' sensitivity and specificity in this review overlapped with nasopharyngeal swabs, which are the gold standard of COVID-19 diagnostic tests. Further studies are needed to reduce this range and confirm COVID-19 diagnosis accuracy using saliva as a test specimen. These studies are recommended to be conducted at different stages of COVID19 infection and should be reported following the STARD statement and considering the limitations mentioned above.

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Transmission routes of 2019-nCoV and controls in dental practice

Substantial undocumented infection facilitates the rapid dissemination of novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2)

Consistent Detection of 2019 Novel Coronavirus in Saliva

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