Background
infections
SARS-COV-2 INFECTION, SEVERE ACUTE RESPIRATORY SYNDROME, INFECTIONS, CORONAVIRUS, APPENDIX
I have read the journal’s policy and the authors of this manuscript have the following competing interests: JLG reports personal fees for symposia presentations organized by Abbott Rapid Diagnosis SAS in 2021 and Qiagen Inc in 2022. TS reports grants or contracts from AstraZeneca, Bayer, Boehringer, Daiichi-Sankyo, Eli-Lilly, GSK, Novartis, Sanofi, payment or honoraria for lectures from Servier, Novartis, participation on a Data Safety Monitoring Board or Advisory Board from Ablative Solutions, Air Liquide, AstraZeneca, Sanofi, Novartis, 4Living Biotech.¶ Membership of the DEPIST-COVID group is provided in the document Appendix M. Study group.Asymptomatic and paucisymptomatic infections account for a substantial portion of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) transmissions. The value of intensified screening strategies, especially in emergency departments (EDs), in reaching asymptomatic and paucisymptomatic patients and helping to improve detection and reduce transmission has not been documented. The objective of this study was to evaluate in EDs whether an intensified SARS-CoV-2 screening strategy combining nurse-driven screening for asymptomatic/paucisymptomatic patients with routine practice (intervention) could contribute to higher detection of SARS-CoV-2 infections compared to routine practice alone, including screening for symptomatic or hospitalized patients (control).