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Acceptance of a Symptom-Based Approach for COVID-19 rtRT-PCR Testing to Conserve Resources in a Lower Middle-Income Setting
| Content Provider | SAGE Publishing |
|---|---|
| Author | S. M. Rashed Ul Islam Akther, Tahmina Md. Abdullah Omar Nasif Sultana, Sharmin Munshi, Saif Ullah |
| Copyright Year | 2021 |
| Abstract | SARS-CoV-2 initially emerged in Wuhan, China in late 2019. It has since been recognized as a pandemic and has led to great social and economic disruption globally. The Reverse Transcriptase Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (rtRT-PCR) has become the primary method for COVID-19 testing worldwide. The method requires a specialized laboratory set up. Long-term persistence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in nasopharyngeal secretion after full clinical recovery of the patient is regularly observed nowadays. This forces the patients to spend a longer period in isolation and test repeatedly to obtain evidence of viral clearance. Repeated COVID-19 testing in asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic cases often leads to extra workload for laboratories that are already struggling with a high specimen turnover. Here, we present 5 purposively selected cases with different patterns of clinical presentations in which nasopharyngeal shedding of SARS-CoV-2 RNA was observed in patients for a long time. From these case studies, we emphasized the adoption of a symptom-based approach for discontinuing transmission-based precautions over a test-based strategy to reduce the time spent by asymptomatic and mildly symptomatic COVID-19 patients in isolation. A symptom-based approach will also help reduce laboratory burden for COVID-19 testing as well as conserve valuable resources and supplies utilized for rtRT-PCR testing in an emerging lower-middle-income setting. Most importantly, it will also make room for critically ill COVID-19 patients to visit or avail COVID-19 testing at their convenience. |
| Related Links | https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/2150132720987711?download=true |
| ISSN | 21501319 |
| Volume Number | 12 |
| Journal | Journal of Primary Care & Community Health (JPC) |
| e-ISSN | 21501327 |
| DOI | 10.1177/2150132720987711 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Sage Publications CA |
| Publisher Date | 2021-02-01 |
| Publisher Place | Los Angeles |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Rights Holder | © The Author(s) 2021 |
| Subject Keyword | COVID-19 disease management access to care SARS-CoV-2 lower middle-income settings serial testing rtRT-PCR |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Article |
| Subject | Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health Community and Home Care |
