tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Open Forum Infect Dis
. 2022 May 7;9(7)
fac226.
doi: 10.1093/ofid/ofac226. eCollection 2022 Jul.
Detection of SARS-CoV-2 by Canine Olfaction: A Pilot Study
Maureen Maurer[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Todd Seto[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Claire Guest[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Amendeep Somal[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Catherine Julian[SUP] 5 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Abstract
Background: As the number of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases continue to surge worldwide and new variants emerge, additional accurate, rapid, and noninvasive screening methods to detect severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) are needed. The number of COVID-19 cases reported globally is >455 million, and deaths have surpassed 6 million. Current diagnostic methods are expensive, invasive, and produce delayed results. While COVID-19 vaccinations are proven to help slow the spread of infection and prevent serious illness, they are not equitably available worldwide. Almost 40% of the world's population remains unvaccinated. Evidence suggests that SARS-CoV-2 virus-associated volatile organic compounds found in the breath, urine, and sweat of infected individuals can be detected by canine olfaction. Medical detection dogs may be a feasible, accurate, and affordable SARS-CoV-2 screening method.
Methods: In this double-blinded, case-control, validation study, we obtained sweat samples from inpatients and outpatients tested for SARS-CoV-2 by a polymerase chain reaction test. Medical detection dogs were trained to distinguish SARS-CoV-2-positive samples from SARS-CoV-2-negative samples using reward-based reinforcement.
Results: Samples were obtained from 584 individuals (6-97 years of age; 24% positive SARS-CoV-2 samples and 76% negative SARS-CoV-2 samples). In the testing phase, all dogs performed with high accuracy in detecting SARS-CoV-2. The overall diagnostic sensitivity was 98%, and specificity was 92%. In a follow-up phase, 1 dog screened 153 patients for SARS-CoV-2 in a hospital setting with 96% diagnostic sensitivity and 100% specificity.
Conclusions: Canine olfaction is an accurate and feasible method for diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2, including asymptomatic and presymptomatic infected individuals.
Keywords: SARS-CoV-2; canine olfaction; medical detection dogs; virus detection; volatile organic compounds.
. 2022 May 7;9(7)
fac226.doi: 10.1093/ofid/ofac226. eCollection 2022 Jul.
Detection of SARS-CoV-2 by Canine Olfaction: A Pilot Study
Maureen Maurer[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Todd Seto[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Claire Guest[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Amendeep Somal[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Catherine Julian[SUP] 5 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 35818366
- PMCID: PMC9129167
- DOI: 10.1093/ofid/ofac226
Abstract
Background: As the number of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases continue to surge worldwide and new variants emerge, additional accurate, rapid, and noninvasive screening methods to detect severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) are needed. The number of COVID-19 cases reported globally is >455 million, and deaths have surpassed 6 million. Current diagnostic methods are expensive, invasive, and produce delayed results. While COVID-19 vaccinations are proven to help slow the spread of infection and prevent serious illness, they are not equitably available worldwide. Almost 40% of the world's population remains unvaccinated. Evidence suggests that SARS-CoV-2 virus-associated volatile organic compounds found in the breath, urine, and sweat of infected individuals can be detected by canine olfaction. Medical detection dogs may be a feasible, accurate, and affordable SARS-CoV-2 screening method.
Methods: In this double-blinded, case-control, validation study, we obtained sweat samples from inpatients and outpatients tested for SARS-CoV-2 by a polymerase chain reaction test. Medical detection dogs were trained to distinguish SARS-CoV-2-positive samples from SARS-CoV-2-negative samples using reward-based reinforcement.
Results: Samples were obtained from 584 individuals (6-97 years of age; 24% positive SARS-CoV-2 samples and 76% negative SARS-CoV-2 samples). In the testing phase, all dogs performed with high accuracy in detecting SARS-CoV-2. The overall diagnostic sensitivity was 98%, and specificity was 92%. In a follow-up phase, 1 dog screened 153 patients for SARS-CoV-2 in a hospital setting with 96% diagnostic sensitivity and 100% specificity.
Conclusions: Canine olfaction is an accurate and feasible method for diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2, including asymptomatic and presymptomatic infected individuals.
Keywords: SARS-CoV-2; canine olfaction; medical detection dogs; virus detection; volatile organic compounds.