Feasibility of At-Home Virological and Serological Testing for SARS-CoV-2 in Children

Amina Ahmed; Whitney Rossman; Lauren C Lu; Connell O Dunn; Anna M Harris; Jennifer S Priem; Timothy C Hetherington; Abigail J Porzucek; Christopher N Mores; Paola Castri; William H Lagarde; Keerti L Dantuluri; COVID-19 Community Research Partnership

doi:10.1093/ofid/ofac459

Feasibility of At-Home Virological and Serological Testing for SARS-CoV-2 in Children

Open Forum Infect Dis. 2022 Sep 7;9(9):ofac459. doi: 10.1093/ofid/ofac459. eCollection 2022 Sep.

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pediatrics (Infectious Diseases) at Levine Children's Hospital, Atrium Health, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA.
² Center for Outcomes Research and Evaluation, Atrium Health, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA.
³ Department of Emergency Medicine Research, Atrium Health, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA.
⁴ Milken Institute School of Public Health, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA.
⁵ Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Health, Winston Salem, North Carolina, USA.
⁶ Wake Med Health and Hospitals, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA.

Abstract

Longitudinal virological and serological surveillance is essential for understanding severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS CoV-2) transmission among children but requires increased test capacity. We assessed the uptake of serial at-home testing in children (2-17 years) via mailed SARS-CoV-2 antibody and molecular tests. Completion rates demonstrated the feasibility and sustainability of at-home testing across age groups.

Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; feasibility; serological surveillance; virological surveillance.