Taking into consideration the evolution of coronavirus outbreak, the Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation (APSF) and the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) updated the joint statement on perioperative testing for the SARS-CoV-2 virus. A population risk evaluation assessing the prevalence of coronavirus should be reviewed. In case of regional or local community transmission of coronavirus:

• Before presenting to the medical care facility, all the people must undergo screening for symptoms. Those people reporting symptoms must be referred for additional assessment. All the other people must undergo nucleic acid amplification testing (such as polymerase chain reaction tests) before undergoing any kind of non-emergent surgery.
• If an individual tests positive for COVID-19, elective surgical procedures must be postponed until the person is no longer infectious and has shown recovery from SARS-CoV-2 infection. A person might be infectious until either:

(1) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) non-test-based approach in mild-moderate cases of coronavirus disease:

(a) At least twenty-four hours since the resolution of fever without using fever-alleviating medications and improved respiratory symptoms
(b) At least ten days since the appearance of first symptoms

(2) CDC non-test-based approach in severe cases of coronavirus disease or in immunocompromised people:

(a) At least ten days and up to twenty days have passed since the appearance of symptoms

(b) At least twenty-four hours since the resolution of fever without using fever-alleviating medications and enhancement in the respiratory symptoms

(c) Symptoms (such as breath shortness, cough) have improved

In areas with a high prevalence of coronavirus infection,  all people undergoing an anesthetic, procedure, or operation with the potential to generate aerosols must continue to have preoperative testing for coronavirus (such as reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction testing), ideally ≤ 3 days before the procedure, regardless of the vaccination status.

For detection of coronavirus, a promising screening and testing program is pivotal to ensure safety of medical care workers, patients, and general public.