Non-Invasive molecular dengue virus 1 diagnosis in saliva is possible

Dengue is a systemic virus infection, endemic in tropical/subtropical regions and of increasing global importance. The diagnostic gold standard for acute infection is the detection of viral RNA through reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) in blood. Regrettably, venous collection requires specialized professionals, and dengue tests may be avoided by those who afraid of needles. Therefore, the aim of the present study is to evaluate the feasibility of using saliva in DENV-1 detection.

RT-qPCR was performed to detect DENV-1 in 201 paired saliva and plasma samples, from individuals with up to five days from the onset of symptoms.

140 (69.65 %) patients had DENV-1 positive detection in plasma and 115 (57.21 %) positive in saliva samples. Those values rendered a sensitivity of 82.14 % and 100 % of specificity (agreement kappa index 0.736 [0.69 - 0.77].

Despite reduced sensitivity, we demonstrated the feasibility of DENV-1 diagnosis in saliva samples, presenting a valuable alternative, particularly in outbreak scenario.