Byrne RL, Kay GA, Kontogianni K, Aljayyoussi G, Brown L, Collins AM, Cuevas LE, Ferreira DM, Fraser AJ, Garrod G, Hill H, Hughes GL, Menzies S, Mitsi E, Owen SI, Patterson EI, Williams CT, Hyder-Wright A, Adams ER, Cubas-Atienzar AI. Saliva Alternative to Upper Respiratory Swabs for SARS-CoV-2 Diagnosis. Emerg Infect Dis. 2020 Sep 11;26(11). doi: 10.3201/eid2611.203283. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 32917294.
PCR of upper respiratory specimens is the diagnostic standard for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection. However, saliva sampling is an easy alternative to nasal and throat swabbing. We found similar viral loads in saliva samples and in nasal and throat swab samples from 110 patients with coronavirus disease.