Coronavirus Stool Testing -Now Available!

Monitor, Manage, and Prevent Transmission of COVID-19 with the New SARS-CoV-2 qPCR Stool Test from Diagnostic Solutions Laboratory

Key Points:

- Cutting-edge viral RNA qPCR stool test measures levels of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.
- Screen, monitor, or prevent transmission in patients at risk for COVID-19.SARS-CoV-2 in stool may be found in up to 53.4% of COVID-19 patients.The virus may be detected in stool for a period of days to weeks after initial infection.
- Intestinal viral infection may play an important role in COVID-19 disease progression and may increase risk for more severe disease.
- Detection of SARS-CoV-2 in stool could be used to prevent fecal-oral transmission.

Overview

COVID-19 is an infectious disease the World Health Organization has identified as a global pandemic. SARS-CoV-2 is a novel, single strand RNA virus that causes COVID-19.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, COVID-19 is mainly spread person to person through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes. Other means of virus transmission are possible as well. Asymptomatic patients or patients who have not yet presented with symptoms may transmit the virus to others, and the virus may also be spread by contacting a contaminated surface.

Below you’ll find facts about COVID-19 and information about testing options Diagnostic Solutions lab offer to help detect the presence of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes the disease.

Symptomology Related to COVID-19

Some people with COVID-19 remain asymptomatic carriers of the disease, while others exhibit varying degrees of the following common symptoms:

Fever
Cough
Shortness of breath
Gastrointestinal Complaints
- Diarrhea
- Abdominal pain
- Vomiting
Anorexia (loss of appetite)

COVID-19 Diagnostic Test (oral and NP Swab)

Diagnostic Solutions COVID-19 Assay is listed on the FDA website as a validated test under Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) guidelines. This test is currently available only to hospitals and public health institutionsand uses RT-PCR technology to identify SARS-CoV-2 using a nasopharyngeal (NP) or oral swab.

SARS-CoV-2 Stool Analysis – Screening and Surveillance Test is available to all

The SARS-CoV-2 stool test also uses RT-PCR technology to detect the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in stool and is now available at Johnson Compounding and Wellness by special order.

Research from around the world indicates that as many as 50 percent of patients who are positive for SARS-CoV-2 experience gastrointestinal complaints.¹

Furthermore, evidence suggests SARS-CoV-2 is detectable in stool and its presence in stool may last for up to five weeks after clearance from the respiratory tract. A recent article published in Lancet states:

“Our data suggest the possibility of extended duration of viral shedding in faeces, for nearly 5 weeks after the patients’ respiratory samples tested negative for SARS-CoV-2 RNA. Although knowledge about the viability of SARS-CoV-2 is limited, the virus could remain viable in the environment for days, which could lead to faecal–oral transmission, as seen with severe acute respiratory virus CoV and Middle East respiratory syndrome CoV. Therefore, routine stool sample testing with real-time RT-PCR is highly recommended after the clearance of viral RNA in a patient’s respiratory samples. Strict precautions to prevent transmission should be taken for patients who are in hospital or self-quarantined if their faecal samples test positive.”²

The SARS-COV-2 Stool Test is Helpful for the Following Individuals:

Patients exhibiting signs and symptoms of SARS-CoV-2, including:
- Fever
- Cough
- Shortness of breath
- Gastrointestinal Complaints
Asymptomatic Patients Concerned about Having or Transmitting the Virus
Surveillance of patients who previously tested positive for COVID-19 by respiratory sample

The SARS-CoV-2 Stool Analysis is not diagnostic of COVID-19. COVID-19 disease can only be diagnosed with positive SARS-CoV-2 results on a respiratory sample.

REFERENCES

Xiao F, Tang M, Zheng X, Liu Y, Li X, Shan H. “Evidence for gastrointestinal infection of SARS-CoV-2”. Gastroenterology. 2020.
“Prolonged Presence of SARS-CoV-2 Viral RNA in Faecal Samples”, last modified March 19, 2020, accessed March 30, 2020.

3/16/2020