Abstract
Asymptomatic individuals with coronavirus disease (COVID-19) have been identified via nucleic acid testing for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2); however, the epidemiologic characteristics and viral shedding pattern of asymptomatic patients remain largely unknown. In this study, serological testing was applied when identifying nine asymptomatic cases of COVID-19 who showed persistent negative RT-PCR test results for SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid and no symptoms of COVID-19. Two asymptomatic cases were presumed to be index patients who had cleared the virus when their close contacts developed symptoms of COVID-19. Three of the asymptomatic cases were local individuals who spontaneously recovered before their presumed index patients developed symptoms of COVID-19. This report presents the epidemiologic and clinical characteristics of asymptomatic individuals with SARS-CoV-2 infection that were undetected on RT-PCR tests in previous epidemiologic investigations probably due to the transient viral shedding duration.
Highlights
The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has spread globally, mainly via person-to-person transmission, and poses a major public health concern [1]
Nine additional asymptomatic patients of COVID-19 were identified via serological tests in 38 close contacts of COVID-19 patients who had persistently negative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test results for SARS-CoV-2
Local COVID-19 cases are rare in Loudi District, which has a total of 76 symptomatic patients and 26 asymptomatic patients who were identified via RT-PCR test for SARS-CoV-2
Summary
The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has spread globally, mainly via person-to-person transmission, and poses a major public health concern [1]. A case report identified a 61-year-old asymptomatic patient with abnormal CT images and positive RT-PCR test results for SARS-CoV-2 that persisted for 23 days in the absence of obvious clinical symptoms [4]. Case 1 showed negative RT-PCR test results for SARS-CoV-2 on nasopharyngeal swab samples collected on February 12, 17, and 24 and exhibited no fever, cough, dyspnea, headache, fatigue, gastrointestinal, or other COVID-19 symptoms, and she did not receive any therapeutic intervention over this period. No characteristic symptom of COVID-19 was reported thereafter; a blood sample collected on February 28, 2020, tested positive for anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody (Figure 1), Case 2 had no COVID-19-related symptoms or complications during the following 2 months. The cases denied previous exposure to SARS-CoV-2 and received no therapeutic intervention or complained of COVID-19-related symptoms or complications during the following 2 months
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