Nasal Swab Sampling for SARS-CoV-2: a Convenient Alternative in Times of Nasopharyngeal Swab Shortage
Hélène Péré, Isabelle Podglajen, Maxime Wack, Edouard Flamarion, Tristan Mirault, Guillaume Goudot, Caroline Hauw‐Berlemont, Laetitia Minh Maï Lê, Éric Caudron, Sophie Carrabin, Julien Rodary, Tatiana Ribeyre, Laurent Bélec, David Veyer
Abstract
Nasopharyngeal swab is the reference sampling method to detect severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), as recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) (1). However, nasal specimens may have a slightly lower sensitivity than nasopharyngeal specimens (2, 3). We herein validated an alternative procedure to collect nasal secretions with a swab routinely used in medical bacteriology for which there is no risk of supply disruption in order to perform the molecular diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection.