SARS-CoV-2 and the ocular surface: test accuracy and viral load.
Dalton de Freitas SantoroLuciene Barbosa de SouzaLucas Baldissera TochettoDanielle Dias ConteAna Luísa Hofling LimaLuciene Barbosa de SousaNancy Cristina Junqueira BelleiDenise FreitasLauro Augusto de OliveiraPublished in: Arquivos brasileiros de oftalmologia (2023)
The Schirmer (16.3%) and conjunctival swab (17.4%) tests were comparably capable of detecting SARS-CoV-2 RNA in the ocular surface by RT-PCR accurately based on nasopharyngeal status and demonstrated indistinct sensitivity and specificity. Simultaneous specimen sampling and processing from the nasopharyngeal, Schirmer, and conjunctival swab/cytology tests demonstrated significantly lower viral load in both ocular surface approaches than in the nasopharyngeal test. Ocular manifestations detected by slit lamp biomicroscopy were not associated with ocular RT-PCR positivity.