Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35246421›Full record

ArticleBMJ open2022

Examining the association between reported COVID-19 symptoms and testing for COVID-19 in Canada: a cross-sectional survey.

Roland Pongou, Bright Opoku Ahinkorah, Marie Christelle Mabeu, Arunika Agarwal, Stephanie Maltais, Sanni Yaya

Open access · goldAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in BMJ open, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
7citing papers in PubMed
1.4field-weighted citation impact, top 18% 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

7 citing papers in PubMed, 11 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Trends in Testing for SARS-CoV-2 Among Healthcare Workers in a Canadian Cohort Study During the COVID-19 Pandemic, June 2020 to November 2023.The Canadian journal of infectious diseases & medical microbiology = Journal canadien des maladies infectieuses et de la microbiologie medicale · 2025
    Article
  5. COVID-19 among Black people in Canada: a scoping review.Health promotion and chronic disease prevention in Canada : research, policy and practice · 2024
    Article
  6. Article
  7. Article
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

6 authors at 4 institutions in 4 countries.

Roland PongouDepartment of Economics, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
Bright Opoku AhinkorahUniversity of Technology Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.ORCID 0000-0001-7415-895X
Marie Christelle MabeuDepartment of Economics, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA.
Arunika AgarwalDepartment of Global Health and Population, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Stephanie MaltaisSchool of International Development and Global Studies, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.ORCID 0000-0003-3752-0280
Sanni YayaSchool of International Development and Global Studies, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada sanni.yaya@uOttawa.ca.ORCID 0000-0002-4876-6043
Harvard University · USUniversity of Ottawa · CAStanford University · USUniversity of Technology Sydney · AU

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesStudies on the management of the COVID-19 pandemic through testing have been conducted in countries that have been hardest hit by this pandemic. Considering the importance of testing in containing the spread of COVID-19, it is useful to have evidence on continuing COVID-19 testing even in countries where the prevalence of COVID-19 is relatively low. We, therefore, examined the association between reported COVID-19 symptoms and testing for COVID-19 in Canada. DESIGN AND SETTINGS: We conducted an online survey using the SurveyMonkey platform between July and October 2020 across Canada.

participantsA nationally representative sample size of 2790 adult individuals was used.

resultsOur findings show that respondents who reported that they and/or members of their households had COVID-19 symptoms were more likely to test for COVID-19 (adjusted OR, aOR 1.91; 95% CI 1.32 to 2.76) as compared with those who did not report COVID-19 symptoms. The likelihood of testing for COVID-19 was lower among male respondents compared with females (aOR 0.69; 95% CI 0.49 to 0.96), respondents aged 65-84 compared with those aged 18-44 (aOR 0.62; 95% CI 0.42 to 0.93), and respondents in British Columbia compared with those residing in Quebec. Higher odds of testing for COVID-19 were found among respondents who lived in Alberta compared with those who lived in Quebec (aOR 0.42; 95% CI 0.23 to 0.75) and respondents who had postgraduate education compared with those with high school or less education (aOR 1.84; 95% CI 1.01 to 3.36). The association between reported COVID-19 symptoms and testing for COVID-19 was statistically significant among female respondents (aOR 1.52; 95% CI 1.81 to 3.52) but not among male respondents.

conclusionsIn conclusion, this study provides evidence in support of the hypothesis that there is significant association between reported COVID-19 symptoms and COVID-19 testing among adult Canadians. The study highlights the need for the Canadian government to prioritise subpopulations (ie, males, those aged 65-85, and those with high school or less education) that have lower likelihood of seeking COVID-19 testing to get tested when they have symptoms.

Indexed as

COVID-19AdolescentAdultAgedAged, 80 and overAlbertaCanadaCOVID-19 TestingCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHumansMalePandemicsSARS-CoV-2Young AdultCanadaCOVID-19global healthsymptomstesting

Identifiers

PMID35246421
PMCPMC8918074
OpenAlexW4214864623

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.