HOW WILL DEMOGRAPHIC CHANGE AFFECT THE DISEASE BURDEN OF FUTURE EPIDEMICS?

Abstract

on the cobas SARS-CoV-2 assay (Roche) and the Aptima SARS-CoV-2 assay (Hologic). Findings: We demonstrated comparable sensitivity, specificity, and agreement between self-collected nasal and Rhinoswab samples , compared to HCW-collected samples tested using the cobas SARS-CoV-2 and Aptima SARS-CoV-2 assays. In our study the clinical performance of self-collected specimens was comparable to HCW-collected samples, with both self-collect nasal and Rhi-noswab samples resulting in 90-95% sensitivity, and in most cases > 95% specificity. Discussion: Without the availability of samples for NAAT the ability to perform genomic testing is limited, reducing surveillance and public health investigations. We showed that genomic sequencing from self-collected samples can correctly identify the virus lineage and that the main determination of successful ge-nomic testing is a high viral load rather than collection method. Conclusion: These data support self-collection as an accessible method for community testing for COVID-19 and introduces a novel collection device, the Rhinoswab as an alternative to the standard nasal swab. The testing method of self-collection can be expanded from the widely used RATs to NAAT and genomic testing which may inform the management and public health response to the COVID-19 pandemic.