key: cord-0860477-jv4a9lun
authors: von Linstow, Marie‐Louise; Kruse, Alexandra; Kirkby, Nikolai; Søes, Lillian Marie; Nygaard, Ulrikka; Poulsen, Anja
title: Response to letter in response to ‘saliva is inferior to nose and throat swabs for SARS‐CoV‐2 detection in children’
date: 2021-09-23
journal: Acta Paediatr
DOI: 10.1111/apa.16112
sha: 128109355d3dbc8e377c309eb3a623793c8e9279
doc_id: 860477
cord_uid: jv4a9lun

We thank Chu and Hale for their important comments on the findings of our study investigating the use of saliva for detecting the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in children.1 Our study followed 20 children and found that in week one and two after diagnosis SARS-CoV-2 was detected in 29% and 11% of saliva samples, 86% and 50% of nasal swabs and 58% and 40% of throat swabs, respectively.2 Chu and Hale got the impression that all saliva samples were taken by a parent, except for the first sample.

We thank Chu and Hale for their important comments on the findings of our study investigating the use of saliva for detecting the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in children. 1 Our study followed 20 children and found that in week one and two after diagnosis SARS-CoV-2 was detected in 29% and 11% of saliva samples, 86% and 50% of nasal swabs and 58% and 40% of throat swabs respectively. 2 Chu and Hale got the impression that all saliva samples were taken by a parent, except for the first sample. This was not the case. Saliva samples, nose and throat swabs were collected once a week by a trained project nurse. In between those visits, parents collected saliva samples at home so that we could monitor the shedding of the virus more closely. We apologise if this was not clear. Chu and Hale suggest that the results should have been broken down by age, but this is difficult in studies with small sample sizes.

However, we did look at this and found no correlation, which is also mentioned in our paper. The age range of the children in our study was seven weeks to 16 years and the four children with a SARS-CoV-2 positive saliva sample in the first week were aged seven weeks, 19 months, six years and 13 years.

Chu and Hale find it hasty to state that saliva was inferior to nose and throat swabs without further investigations. We agree that the title may have seemed too definitive for a study with such a small sample size.

We find it important to publish all results during the pandemic, as we all need to gain knowledge on the best sampling methods for detecting SARS-CoV-2 in children.

The authors have no conflicts of interest.

Letter in response to 'saliva is inferior to nose and throat swabs for SARS-CoV-2 detection in children

Saliva is inferior to nose and throat swabs for SARS-CoV-2 detection in children

Response to letter in response to 'saliva is inferior to nose and throat swabs for SARS-CoV-2 detection in children