SARS‐CoV‐2 viral load in nasopharyngeal swabs in the emergency department does not predict COVID‐19 severity and mortality

Abstract

Respiratory viral load measurement on the first nasopharyngeal swab (by RT-PCR) during initial ED management is neither a predictor of severity nor a predictor of mortality in SARS-CoV-2 infection. Host response to this viral infection along with the extent of preexisting comorbidities might be more foretelling of disease severity than the virus itself.