The detection dogs test is more sensitive than real-time PCR in screening for SARS-CoV-2

In January 2020, the coronavirus disease was declared, by the World Health Organization as a global public health emergency. Recommendations from the WHO COVID Emergency Committee continue to support strengthening COVID surveillance systems, including timely access to effective diagnostics. Questions were raised about the validity of considering the RT-PCR as the gold standard in COVID-19 diagnosis. It has been suggested that a variety of methods should be used to evaluate advocated tests. Dogs had been successfully trained and employed to detect diseases in humans. Here we show that upon training explosives detection dogs on sniffing COVID-19 odor in patients' sweat, those dogs were able to successfully screen out 3249 individuals who tested negative for the SARS-CoV-2, from a cohort of 3290 individuals. Additionally, using Bayesian analysis, the sensitivity of the K9 test was found to be superior to the RT-PCR test performed on nasal swabs from a cohort of 3134 persons. Given its high sensitivity, short turn-around-time, low cost, less invasiveness, and ease of application, the detection dogs test lends itself as a better alternative to the RT-PCR in screening for SARS-CoV-2 in asymptomatic individuals. Hag-Ali and colleagues highlight the potential for using trained dogs for detecting COVID-19 positive patients. The dogs, originally trained for explosives detection, were able to detect COVID-19 positive sweat samples with a sensitivity rivaling the gold-standard RT-PCR test currently used.

Automated summary

Research has shown that trained dogs can successfully screen out a large number of individuals who test negative for SARS-CoV-2 by sniffing COVID-19 odor in patients' sweat. Using Bayesian analysis, the sensitivity of the K9 test was found to be superior to the RT-PCR test performed on nasal swabs from 3134 persons. The detection dogs test, with its high sensitivity, fast turnaround time, low cost, less invasiveness, and ease of application, presents itself as a better alternative to the RT-PCR in screening for SARS-CoV-2 in asymptomatic individuals. Hag-Ali and colleagues have pointed out the potential of using trained dogs to detect COVID-19 positive patients, with their sensitivity rivaling the gold-standard RT-PCR test.