https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.01.11.21268036v1 Skip to main content medRxiv * Home * About * Submit * ALERTS / RSS Search for this keyword [ ] [Search] Advanced Search Screening for SARS-CoV-2 persistence in Long COVID patients using sniffer dogs and scents from axillary sweats samples Dominique Grandjean, Dorsaf Slama, Capucine Gallet, Clothilde Julien, Emilie Seyrat, Marc Blondot, Judith Elbaz, Maissa Benazaiez, View ORCID ProfileDominique Salmon doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.01.11.21268036 Dominique Grandjean 1National Veterinary School of Alfort, 94704 Maisons Alfort, France * Find this author on Google Scholar * Find this author on PubMed * Search for this author on this site Dorsaf Slama 2Infectious Disease Department, Hotel Dieu Hospital, Assistance Publique Hopitaux de Paris (APHP), Paris Centre Hotel-Dieu, 1 Place du Parvis de Notre-Dame, 75004 Paris, France * Find this author on Google Scholar * Find this author on PubMed * Search for this author on this site Capucine Gallet 1National Veterinary School of Alfort, 94704 Maisons Alfort, France * Find this author on Google Scholar * Find this author on PubMed * Search for this author on this site Clothilde Julien 1National Veterinary School of Alfort, 94704 Maisons Alfort, France * Find this author on Google Scholar * Find this author on PubMed * Search for this author on this site Emilie Seyrat 3Long COVID patients, France * Find this author on Google Scholar * Find this author on PubMed * Search for this author on this site Marc Blondot 1National Veterinary School of Alfort, 94704 Maisons Alfort, France * Find this author on Google Scholar * Find this author on PubMed * Search for this author on this site Judith Elbaz 3Long COVID patients, France * Find this author on Google Scholar * Find this author on PubMed * Search for this author on this site Maissa Benazaiez 2Infectious Disease Department, Hotel Dieu Hospital, Assistance Publique Hopitaux de Paris (APHP), Paris Centre Hotel-Dieu, 1 Place du Parvis de Notre-Dame, 75004 Paris, France * Find this author on Google Scholar * Find this author on PubMed * Search for this author on this site Dominique Salmon 2Infectious Disease Department, Hotel Dieu Hospital, Assistance Publique Hopitaux de Paris (APHP), Paris Centre Hotel-Dieu, 1 Place du Parvis de Notre-Dame, 75004 Paris, France 4University of Paris, Paris, France * Find this author on Google Scholar * Find this author on PubMed * Search for this author on this site * ORCID record for Dominique Salmon * For correspondence: dominique.salmon@aphp.fr * Abstract * Full Text * Info/History * Metrics * Data/Code * Preview PDF Loading Abstract Objectives Dogs can be trained to identify several substances not detected by humans, corresponding to specific volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The presence of VOCs, triggered by SARS-CoV-2 infection, was tested in sweat from Long COVID patients. Patients and methods An axillary sweat sample of Long COVID patients and of COVID-19 negative, asymptomatic individuals was taken at home to avoid any hospital contact. Swabs were randomly placed in olfaction detection cones, and the material sniffed by at least 2 trained dogs. Results Forty-five Long COVID patients, mean age 45 (6-71), 73.3% female, with prolonged symptoms evolving for a mean of 15.2 months (5-22) were tested. Dogs discriminated in a positive way 23/45 (51.1%). Long COVID patients versus 0/188 (0%) control individuals (p <.0001). Conclusion This study suggests the persistence of a viral infection in some Long COVID patients and the possibility of providing a simple, highly sensitive, non-invasive test to detect viral presence, during acute and extended phases of COVID-19. Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. Funding Statement This study did not receive any funding Author Declarations I confirm all relevant ethical guidelines have been followed, and any necessary IRB and/or ethics committee approvals have been obtained. Yes The details of the IRB/oversight body that provided approval or exemption for the research described are given below: Institutional Review Board of Mondor, Creteil, France, IRB 00011558, Approval number 2020-088 I confirm that all necessary patient/participant consent has been obtained and the appropriate institutional forms have been archived, and that any patient/participant/sample identifiers included were not known to anyone (e.g., hospital staff, patients or participants themselves) outside the research group so cannot be used to identify individuals. Yes I understand that all clinical trials and any other prospective interventional studies must be registered with an ICMJE-approved registry, such as ClinicalTrials.gov. I confirm that any such study reported in the manuscript has been registered and the trial registration ID is provided (note: if posting a prospective study registered retrospectively, please provide a statement in the trial ID field explaining why the study was not registered in advance). Yes I have followed all appropriate research reporting guidelines and uploaded the relevant EQUATOR Network research reporting checklist(s) and other pertinent material as supplementary files, if applicable. Yes Data Availability All data produced in the present study are available upon reasonable request to the authors Copyright The copyright holder for this preprint is the author/funder, who has granted medRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. All rights reserved. No reuse allowed without permission. View the discussion thread. Back to top PreviousNext Posted January 12, 2022. Download PDF Data/Code Email Thank you for your interest in spreading the word about medRxiv. 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[Send Message] Share Screening for SARS-CoV-2 persistence in Long COVID patients using sniffer dogs and scents from axillary sweats samples Dominique Grandjean, Dorsaf Slama, Capucine Gallet, Clothilde Julien, Emilie Seyrat, Marc Blondot, Judith Elbaz, Maissa Benazaiez, Dominique Salmon medRxiv 2022.01.11.21268036; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/ 2022.01.11.21268036 Share This Article: [https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.01.11] Copy Digg logo Reddit logo Twitter logo CiteULike logo Facebook logo Google logo Mendeley logo Citation Tools Screening for SARS-CoV-2 persistence in Long COVID patients using sniffer dogs and scents from axillary sweats samples Dominique Grandjean, Dorsaf Slama, Capucine Gallet, Clothilde Julien, Emilie Seyrat, Marc Blondot, Judith Elbaz, Maissa Benazaiez, Dominique Salmon medRxiv 2022.01.11.21268036; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/ 2022.01.11.21268036 Citation Manager Formats * BibTeX * Bookends * EasyBib * EndNote (tagged) * EndNote 8 (xml) * Medlars * Mendeley * Papers * RefWorks Tagged * Ref Manager * RIS * Zotero * Tweet Widget * Facebook Like * Google Plus One Subject Area * Infectious Diseases (except HIV/AIDS) Subject Areas All Articles * Addiction Medicine (127) * Allergy and Immunology (345) * Anesthesia (81) * Cardiovascular Medicine (746) * Dentistry and Oral Medicine (130) * Dermatology (81) * Emergency Medicine (227) * Endocrinology (including Diabetes Mellitus and Metabolic Disease) (339) * Epidemiology (7774) * Forensic Medicine (4) * Gastroenterology (330) * Genetic and Genomic Medicine (1484) * Geriatric Medicine (142) * Health Economics (328) * Health Informatics (1086) * Health Policy (558) * Health Systems and Quality Improvement (399) * Hematology (168) * HIV/AIDS (313) * Infectious Diseases (except HIV/AIDS) (9280) * Intensive Care and Critical Care Medicine (509) * Medical Education (173) * Medical Ethics (43) * Nephrology (178) * Neurology (1398) * Nursing (72) * Nutrition (212) * Obstetrics and Gynecology (278) * Occupational and Environmental Health (399) * Oncology (782) * Ophthalmology (230) * Orthopedics (83) * Otolaryngology (149) * Pain Medicine (84) * Palliative Medicine (31) * Pathology (218) * Pediatrics (455) * Pharmacology and Therapeutics (206) * Primary Care Research (175) * Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology (1498) * Public and Global Health (3369) * Radiology and Imaging (550) * Rehabilitation Medicine and Physical Therapy (263) * Respiratory Medicine (462) * Rheumatology (170) * Sexual and Reproductive Health (125) * Sports Medicine (133) * Surgery (165) * Toxicology (34) * Transplantation (78) * Urology (62)