Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35843566›Full record

ArticleClinical microbiology and infection : the official publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases2023

Exhaled SARS-CoV-2 RNA viral load kinetics measured by facemask sampling associates with household transmission.

Daniel Pan, Caroline M Williams, Jonathan Decker, Eve Fletcher, Shirley Sze, Sara Assadi, Richard Haigh, Baber Saleem, Joshua Nazareth, Natalie J Garton and 2 more

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

Article in Clinical microbiology and infection : the official publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
9citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
3.2field-weighted citation impact, top 7% 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

9 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 23 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Review
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Article
  7. Review
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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

12 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.

Daniel PanDepartment of Respiratory Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK; Department of Infectious Diseases and HIV Medicine, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, UK; Li Ka Shing Center for Health Information and Discovery, Oxford Big Data Institute, University of Oxford, UK. Electronic address: Daniel.pan@nhs.net.
Caroline M WilliamsDepartment of Respiratory Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK; Department of Clinical Microbiology, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, UK.
Jonathan DeckerDepartment of Respiratory Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.
Eve FletcherDepartment of Respiratory Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.
Shirley SzeDepartment of Cardiovascular Sciences, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, UK.
Sara AssadiDepartment of Infectious Diseases and HIV Medicine, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, UK.
Richard HaighDepartment of Respiratory Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.
Baber SaleemDepartment of Engineering, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.
Joshua NazarethDepartment of Respiratory Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK; Department of Infectious Diseases and HIV Medicine, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, UK.
Natalie J GartonDepartment of Respiratory Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.
Manish PareekDepartment of Respiratory Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK; Department of Infectious Diseases and HIV Medicine, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, UK.
Michael R BarerDepartment of Respiratory Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK; Department of Clinical Microbiology, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, UK.
University of Leicester · GBUniversity Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust · GBUniversity of Oxford · GB

Funding

Medical Research Council MC_PC_18054Medical Research Council MR/P023061/1Medical Research Council MR/S002278/1Medical Research Council MR/T031255/1
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesNo studies have examined longitudinal patterns of naturally exhaled SARS-CoV-2 RNA viral load (VL) during acute infection. We report this using facemask sampling (FMS) and assessed the relationship between emitted RNA VL and household transmission.

methodsBetween December 2020 and February 2021, we recruited participants within 24 hours of a positive RT-qPCR on upper respiratory tract sampling (URTS) (day 0). Participants gave FMS (for 1 hour) and URTS (self-taken) on seven occasions up to day 21. Samples were analysed by RT-qPCR (from sampling matrix strips within the mask) and symptom diaries were recorded. Household transmission was assessed through reporting of positive URTS RT-qPCR in household contacts.

resultsAnalysis of 203 FMS and 190 URTS from 34 participants showed that RNA VL peaked within the first 5 days following sampling. Concomitant URTS, FMS RNA VL, and symptom scores, however, were poorly correlated, but a higher severity of reported symptoms was associated with FMS positivity up to day 5. Of 28 participants who had household contacts, 12 (43%) reported transmission. Frequency of household transmission was associated with the highest (peak) FMS RNA VL obtained (negative genome copies/strip: 0% household transmission; 1 to 1000 copies/strip: 20%; 1001 to 10 000 copies/strip: 57%; >10 000 copies/strip: 75%; p = 0.048; age adjusted OR of household transmission per log increase in copies/strip: 4.97; 95% CI, 1.20-20.55; p = 0.02) but not observed with peak URTS RNA VL. DISCUSSION: Exhaled RNA VL measured by FMS is highest in early infection, can be positive in symptomatic patients with concomitantly negative URTS, and is strongly associated with household transmission.

Indexed as

COVID-19HumansMasksRNA, ViralSARS-CoV-2Viral LoadRNA, ViralAirborneCOVID-19Exhaled virusFacemask samplingNasopharyngeal samplingRespiratory virusesSARS-CoV-2TransmissionViral diagnosticsViral load

Identifiers

PMID35843566
PMCPMC9281452
OpenAlexW4285402147

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
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.