COVID-19 Tests With Saliva Specimens

Upper respiratory swabs, such as the nasopharyngeal (NP) swab, have so far been major specimen sources used for the SARS-COV-2 molecular test. However, due to the discomfort and invasiveness of NP collection, and the expense of personal protective equipment, alternative sampling sources such as saliva are desired. The purpose of this proposed study is: 1) to examine whether saliva can be used as an specimen for the SARS-COV-2 molecular test; 2) to test if gingival crevicular fluids is a reliable specimen for the SARS-COV-2 antibodies.