Throughout the year, thousands of Malaysians have taken the COVID-19 swab tests, which is honestly not the most comfortable of experiences, to say the least.
Some had mild experiences, some had 'traumatic' ones to the extent of having their nose bleeding. But all that will be a thing of the past soon.
Swapping swabs for saliva
According to the Bernama, some government hospitals will be conducting COVID-19 tests using deep throat saliva samples, said Health Minister Datuk Seri Adham Baba.
The minister says that based on the evaluation by the Institute for Medical Research (IMR), deep throat saliva has a sensitivity of 96.67 per cent and 100 per cent specificity.
In addition, the sampling method is safe and non-invasive compared to sampling with the “nasopharyngeal” and the “oropharyngeal” swab through the nose and mouth, he said.
“The Health Ministry (MOH) has received approval in principle from IMR to use the saliva sampling method at government hospitals first.
“Sampling of COVID-19 through saliva will also speed up and increases COVID-19 screenings,” he told reporters.
How will this test work?
Dr Adham said the sampling method using saliva is self-collected, and this method is expected to cut down on the usage of personal protective equipment (PPE).
“Patients will be asked to remove their own saliva into a specimen cup and the cup will then be sent to the laboratory for testing,” he added.
Well, soon, your fear of going for a COVID-19 screening will be non-existent. We hope with this new non-invasive method, more people will get themselves tested soon.