Abstract
Covid-19 is a respiratory disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The high rate of contagion and the spread of the virus in the population make the early detection of the pathogen the means for the adequate targeting of infection control measures. WHO directs sample collection on upper respiratory specimens, including nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal swab or wash in ambulatory patients, as well as lower respiratory specimens: sputum and/or endotracheal aspirate or bronchoalveolar lavage, in addition to citing blood and feces. Among the various sample collection methods, saliva has been investigated and reported as a potential source for diagnosis. Thus, we propose to evaluate the current scenario, based on recent publications on the perspective of detecting SARS-CoV-2 in saliva as a diagnostic method for Covid-19. The detection of SARS-CoV-2 through saliva seems to be very promising, although obstacles such as the technique and the location of the collection and the sample size of the research carried out so far may present a limitation for its use. The current scenario presents saliva as a reliable method for the detection of SARS-CoV-2, due to the ease of obtaining the samples, the possibility of self-collection, low cost because there is no need to use specific equipment, in addition to reducing the risk of transmission for health professionals.
Highlights
The coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) is a respiratory disease considered a pandemic by the World
Despite the limitations of the study concerning the sample size, they supported the indication of these samples as a diagnostic method for SARS-CoV-2, because they were able to detect the presence of the virus in early samples even before the appearance of lung lesions, suggesting transmission by oral droplets by asymptomatic patients [10]
Previous authors detected SARS-CoV2 in 91.7%, corresponding to 11 out of 12 patients evaluated, and argued in their study that saliva is a means of transmission in the positive test case for viral culture, since it can be expelled through droplets, in cough or even in cases with no respiratory symptoms
Summary
The coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) is a respiratory disease considered a pandemic by the WorldHealth Organization (WHO), caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2 (SARSCoV-2), so designated by the International Committee of Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV), and initially named 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV). Despite the limitations of the study concerning the sample size, they supported the indication of these samples as a diagnostic method for SARS-CoV-2, because they were able to detect the presence of the virus in early samples even before the appearance of lung lesions, suggesting transmission by oral droplets by asymptomatic patients [10].
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