A new method of testing for the novel coronavirus using mucus taken from the front of the nasal cavity has been introduced, according to Health, Labor and Welfare Minister Norihisa Tamura.
For the new test, mucus samples can be taken about two centimeters inside the nostrils by patients themselves, Tamura said at a press conference on Friday. The new method will reduce the risk of infections for medical workers and is expected to facilitate the establishment of a system under which patients can be examined by their family doctors.
The ministry drew up guidelines that explain how to collect nasal mucus samples as well as other test procedures and presented them to local governments on the day.
Patients can take samples on their own with the presence of doctors, and the samples can be used for both PCR (polymerase chain reaction) and antigen tests.
People who have symptoms of infection with the virus are subject to this test method. Those who have shown symptoms for two to nine days can use this method with a simple kit for antigen testing, in principle. Testing for influenza with a simple kit using the same mucus has also become available.
As conventional testing for the coronavirus uses mucus from the back of the nasal cavity or saliva, there have been concerns that doctors and other medical workers face a risk of infection such as from patients' sneezing, while it takes time to collect the samples.
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