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© 2020, Rivett et al. This work is published under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.

Abstract

Significant differences exist in the availability of healthcare worker (HCW) SARS-CoV-2 testing between countries, and existing programmes focus on screening symptomatic rather than asymptomatic staff. Over a 3 week period (April 2020), 1032 asymptomatic HCWs were screened for SARS-CoV-2 in a large UK teaching hospital. Symptomatic staff and symptomatic household contacts were additionally tested. Real-time RT-PCR was used to detect viral RNA from a throat+nose self-swab. 3% of HCWs in the asymptomatic screening group tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. 17/30 (57%) were truly asymptomatic/pauci-symptomatic. 12/30 (40%) had experienced symptoms compatible with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)>7 days prior to testing, most self-isolating, returning well. Clusters of HCW infection were discovered on two independent wards. Viral genome sequencing showed that the majority of HCWs had the dominant lineage B∙1. Our data demonstrates the utility of comprehensive screening of HCWs with minimal or no symptoms. This approach will be critical for protecting patients and hospital staff.

Details

Title
Screening of healthcare workers for SARS-CoV-2 highlights the role of asymptomatic carriage in COVID-19 transmission
Author
Rivett, Lucy; Sridhar Sushmita; Sparkes, Dominic; Routledge, Matthew; Jones, Nick K; Forrest, Sally; Young, Jamie; Pereira-Dias, Joana; Hamilton, William L; Ferris, Mark; Estee, Torok M; Meredith, Luke; Gupta, Ravi; Lyons, Paul A; Toshner, Mark; Warne, Ben; Bartholdson Scott Josefin; Cormie Claire; Gill Harmeet; Kean, Iain; Maes Mailis; Reynolds, Nicola; Wantoch Michelle; Caddy, Sarah; Caller Laura; Feltwell Theresa; Hall, Grant; Hosmillo Myra; Houldcroft Charlotte; Jahun Aminu; Khokhar Fahad; Yakovleva, Anna; Butcher, Helen; Caputo, Daniela; Clapham-Riley, Debra; Dolling, Helen; Furlong, Anita; Graves, Barbara; Gresley Emma Le; Kingston, Nathalie; Papadia Sofia; Stark, Hannah; Stirrups, Kathleen E; Webster, Jennifer; Calder, Joanna; Harris, Julie; Hewitt, Sarah; Kennet, Jane; Meadows, Anne; Rastall, Rebecca; Brien, Criona O; Price, Jo; Cherry, Publico; Rowlands, Jane; Ruffolo Valentina; Tordesillas Hugo; Brookes, Karen; Canna, Laura; Cruz, Isabel; Dempsey, Katie; Elmer, Anne; Escoffery Naidine; Jones, Heather; Ribeiro, Carla; Saunders, Caroline; Wright, Angela; Rutendo, Nyagumbo; Roberts, Anne; Bucke Ashlea; Hargreaves, Simone; Johnson, Danielle; Narcorda Aileen; Read, Debbie; Sparke, Christian; Warboys Lucy; Lagadu Kirsty; Lenette, Mactavous; Gould, Tim; Raine, Tim; Mather, Claire; Ramenatte Nicola; Vallier Anne-Laure; Kasanicki, Mary; Eames Penelope-Jane; McNicholas, Chris; Thake, Lisa; Bartholomew, Neil; Brown, Nick; Parmar Surendra; Zhang, Hongyi; Bowring Ailsa; Martell, Geraldine; Quinnell, Natalie; Wright, Jo; Murphy, Helen; Dunmore, Benjamin J; Legchenko Ekaterina; Gräf, Stefan; Huang, Christopher; Hodgson, Josh; Hunter, Kelvin; Martin, Jennifer; Mescia Federica; O'Donnell, Ciara; Pointon, Linda; Shih, Joy; Sutcliffe, Rachel; Tilly, Tobias; Tong Zhen; Treacy, Carmen; Wood, Jennifer; Bergamaschi, Laura; Betancourt Ariana; Bowyer Georgie; De Sa Aloka; Epping Maddie; Hinch, Andrew; Huhn Oisin; Jarvis, Isobel; Lewis, Daniel; Marsden, Joe; McCallum, Simon; Nice Francescsa; Curran, Martin D; Fuller, Stewart; Chaudhry Afzal; Shaw, Ashley; Samworth, Richard J; Bradley, John R; Dougan, Gordon; Smith Kenneth GC; Lehner, Paul J; Matheson, Nicholas J; Wright, Giles; Goodfellow, Ian G; Baker, Stephen; Weekes, Michael P
University/institution
U.S. National Institutes of Health/National Library of Medicine
Publication year
2020
Publication date
2020
Publisher
eLife Sciences Publications Ltd.
e-ISSN
2050084X
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
2598433108
Copyright
© 2020, Rivett et al. This work is published under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.