How are the anal swabs that began to implement …

Given the increase in cases of coronavirus in the world, China It is increasingly using rectal tests to detect covid-19 in people at risk and in travelers from abroad, a method supposed to be more reliable but criticized by users of social networks.

Although the country has managed to significantly reduce the epidemic since the start of 2020 and only two deaths have been recorded since May, there have been small, localized outbreaks in recent weeks that have prompted health authorities to carry out rapid tests. and massive on tens of thousands of people in PCR.

The usual way to take samples is through the nose or throat. However, according to public television CCTV, residents of several areas of Beijing where infections were recently discovered underwent rectal testing.

How is the test

It is a kind of suppository, five centimeters long, as reported by The Daily Mail, the process of which takes no more than 10 seconds. This test is also imposed on people in mandatory quarantine in hotels, including travelers from abroad.

This novelty generated different reactions among Internet users, between mistrust and ridicule due to the characteristics of the process. “It’s not too painful, but it’s super humiliating”said a user of the Weibo social network.

“I had two anal scans. During the process, they also took a throat swab. Every time I was afraid the nurse would forget to change the swab in between, ”another person joked.

“The rectal test increases the detection rate of those infected because the coronavirus stays longer in the anus than in the airways,” the doctor told CCTV Li Tongzengfrom You’an Hospital in Beijing.

In this regard, Li noted, “We have found that some asymptomatic patients tend to recover quickly. The virus may not be in your throat after three to five days. “

“If we do anal swabs for nucleic acid testing, it would increase the detection rate of patients and reduce the possibility of a missed diagnosis,” the expert added.

For its part, CCTV said on Sunday that rectal testing will not be generalized because “they are not practical enough”.

China, which has already severely restricted international arrivals since March 2020, has tightened restrictions in recent months.

Anyone wishing to travel to the country must present two negative tests (PCR and serological) before boarding and, upon arrival and alone, carry out a quarantine of at least 14 days in a hotel.