%0 Journal Article %A C van den Kieboom %A L Kurver %A K Lanke %A D Diavatopoulos %A G Overheul %A M Netea %A J Ten Oever %A R Van Crevel %A K Mulders-Manders %A F Van De Veerdonk %A H Wertheim %A J Schouten %A J Rahamat-Langendoen %A R Van Rij %A T Bousema %A A Van Laarhoven %A M De Jonge %T SARS‑CoV‑2 RNA in exhaled air of hospitalized COVID‑19 patients %D 2022 %R 10.1183/13993003.congress-2022.4432 %J European Respiratory Journal %P 4432 %V 60 %N suppl 66 %X Knowledge about contagiousness is key to accurate management of hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Epidemiological studies suggest that in addition to transmission through droplets, aerogenic SARS-CoV-2 transmission contributes to the spread of infection. However, the presence of virus in exhaled air has not yet been sufficiently demonstrated. In pandemic situations low-tech disposable and user-friendly bedside devices are required, while commercially available samplers are unsuitable for application in patients with respiratory distress. We included 49 hospitalized COVID-19 patients and used a disposable modular breath sampler to measure SARS-CoV-2 RNA load in exhaled air samples and compared these SARS-CoV-2 RNA load of combined nasopharyngeal throat swabs and saliva. Exhaled air sampling using the modular breath sampler has proven to be feasible in a clinical COVID-19 setting and demonstrated viral detection in 25% of the patients (Figure 1).Figure 1. SARS-CoV-2 RNA detection in exhaled air samples and nasopharyngeal throat swab samples. Filled dots (●) represent cases in which SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected in exhaled air samples. Open dots (○) represent cases in which SARS-CoV-2 RNA was not detected.FootnotesCite this article as Eur Respir J 2022; 60: Suppl. 66, 4432.This article was presented at the 2022 ERS International Congress, in session “-”.This is an ERS International Congress abstract. No full-text version is available. Further material to accompany this abstract may be available at www.ers-education.org (ERS member access only). %U