Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34158108›Full record

ArticleInfectious agents and cancer2021

SARS-CoV-2 quantitative real time PCR and viral loads analysis among asymptomatic and symptomatic patients: an observational study on an outbreak in two nursing facilities in Campania Region (Southern Italy).

Lorena Cardillo, Claudio de Martinis, Maurizio Viscardi, Claudia Esposito, Emanuela Sannino, Gabriella Lucibelli, Antonio Limone, Stefania Pellino, Rosa Anastasio, Roberta Pellicanò and 3 more

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Infectious agents and cancer, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
10citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
0.9field-weighted citation impact, top 23% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

10 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 15 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

13 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Lorena CardilloDepartment of Animal Health, Unit of Virology, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Mezzogiorno, Via Salute, 2, 8055, Portici, Naples, Italy.
Claudio de MartinisDepartment of Animal Health, Unit of Virology, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Mezzogiorno, Via Salute, 2, 8055, Portici, Naples, Italy. claudio.demartinis@izsmportici.it.
Maurizio ViscardiDepartment of Animal Health, Unit of Virology, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Mezzogiorno, Via Salute, 2, 8055, Portici, Naples, Italy.
Claudia EspositoDepartment of Animal Health, Unit of Virology, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Mezzogiorno, Via Salute, 2, 8055, Portici, Naples, Italy.
Emanuela SanninoDepartment of Animal Health, Unit of Applied Biotechnologies and Bioinformatics, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Mezzogiorno, Portici, Naples, Italy.
Gabriella LucibelliDepartment of Animal Health, Unit of Biomolecular Diagnostics, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Mezzogiorno, Portici, Naples, Italy.
Antonio LimoneIstituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Mezzogiorno, Portici, Naples, Italy.
Stefania PellinoDepartment of Prevention, Azienda Sanitaria Locale (ASL) Benevento, Benevento, Italy.
Rosa AnastasioResidential and Nursing Home Madonna dell'Arco, Sant'Anastasia, Naples, Italy.
Roberta PellicanòDepartment of Epidemiology and Biostatistic Regional Observatory (OREB), Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Mezzogiorno, Portici, Naples, Italy.
Loredana BaldiDepartment of Epidemiology and Biostatistic Regional Observatory (OREB), Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Mezzogiorno, Portici, Naples, Italy.
Giorgio GalieroIstituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Mezzogiorno, Portici, Naples, Italy.
Giovanna FuscoDepartment of Animal Health, Unit of Virology, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Mezzogiorno, Via Salute, 2, 8055, Portici, Naples, Italy.
Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Mezzogiorno · ITASL Roma · IT

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundIn December 2019 an outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 was first observed in Wuhan, China. The virus has spread rapidly throughout the world creating a pandemic scenario. Several risk factors have been identified, such as age, sex, concomitant diseases as well as viral load. A key point is the role of asymptomatic people in spreading SARS-CoV-2. An observational study in Southern Italy was conducted in order to elucidate the possible role of asymptomatic individuals related to their viral loads in the transmission of the virus within two nursing facilities.

methodsOro-nasopharyngeal swabs from 179 nursing health care workers and patients were collected. SARS-CoV-2 RT-qPCR was performed and viral loads were calculated by using standard curve. A statistical correlation between viral loads, the presence/absence of symptoms, age and sex variables was investigated.

resultsSARS-CoV-2 was confirmed in the 50.8 % (n = 91) of the cases. Median age of positive individuals resulted higher than negative ones. Over 65 year as well as female individuals showed higher susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection, OR = 3.93 and 2.86, respectively. Among 91 tested positive, the 70.3 % was symptomatic while the 29.7 % was asymptomatic. Median viral loads of asymptomatic individuals were found statistically significant higher than symptomatic ones (p = 0.001), while no influence was observed in age and sex variables. The presence of comorbidities was 8.9 folds higher in patients who showed and developed symptoms compared to non-symptomatic ones. Moreover, higher viral loads were found in patients who remained asymptomatic than pre-symptomatic (p = 0.022).

conclusionsA range from 9.2 to 69 % of confirmed SARS-CoV-2 cases remains asymptomatic, moreover, sporadic transmissions from asymptomatic people are reported, that makes their involvement an important issue to take into account in the spreading control of the virus. An asymptomatic clinical course was observed in the 29.7 % of positive individuals, moreover, median viral loads resulted to be statistically significant when compared to symptomatic ones. Surely, such a relevant frequency should not be ignored in relation to the spread of the disease in an environment which has not only important intrinsic (age, sex, concomitant diseases) but also extrinsic factors such as high population density and close contacts.

Indexed as

AgeAsymptomaticCOVID-19Risk factorsSARS-CoV-2SexSymptomaticViral loads

Identifiers

PMID34158108
PMCPMC8218569
OpenAlexW3118592440

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.