This paper, published in the Journal of Infection and produced by researchers part-funded under Theme 4 of the PROTECT study, presents a new method for detecting SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) in exhaled breath using sampling strips fixed within face coverings.

Of the 66 hospitalised patients who took part in the study, 38% tested positive by the face mask sampling method within 24 hours of a positive result from a COVID-19 PCR test administered by nasal swab. Higher viral loads in the face mask samples were associated with the development of more severe symptoms.

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