Sensitivity and specificity of heat and moisture exchange filters sampling for SARS-CoV-2 detection in mechanically ventilated COVID-19 patients

Toufik Kamel; Clémence Guillaume; Grégoire Muller; Lekbir Baala; Thierry Boulain

doi:10.1016/j.jmii.2022.04.002

Sensitivity and specificity of heat and moisture exchange filters sampling for SARS-CoV-2 detection in mechanically ventilated COVID-19 patients

J Microbiol Immunol Infect. 2022 Dec;55(6 Pt 1):1122-1125. doi: 10.1016/j.jmii.2022.04.002. Epub 2022 Apr 14.

Authors

Toufik Kamel¹, Clémence Guillaume², Grégoire Muller³, Lekbir Baala⁴, Thierry Boulain⁵

Affiliations

¹ Service de Médecine Intensive-Réanimation, Centre Hospitalier Régional d'Orléans, France; INSERM, UMR1153, ECSTRRA, Université de PARIS, France.
² Pôle de Biopathologie, Centre Hospitalier Régional d'Orléans, France.
³ Service de Médecine Intensive-Réanimation, Centre Hospitalier Régional d'Orléans, France.
⁴ Pôle de Biopathologie, Centre Hospitalier Régional d'Orléans, France; UMR7355 INEM Immunologie et Neurogénétique Expérimentales & Moléculaires, CNRS & Université d'Orléans, France.
⁵ Service de Médecine Intensive-Réanimation, Centre Hospitalier Régional d'Orléans, France. Electronic address: [email protected].

Abstract

We assessed the sensitivity and specificity of SARS-CoV-2 detection by polymerase chain reaction in heat and moisture exchange filters (HMEF) in mechanically ventilated COVID-19 patients. We showed that testing HMEF might obviate the need for a tracheal sample to affirm that a patient is not ready to end isolation.

Keywords: Heat and moisture exchange filters; Intensive care; Isolation; Mechanical ventilation; RT-PCR; SARS-CoV-2.

MeSH terms

COVID-19* / diagnosis
Hot Temperature
Humans
Respiration, Artificial
SARS-CoV-2
Sensitivity and Specificity