Since March, the number of new local new crown infections in my country has spread to 28 provinces. Omicron is highly concealed and spreads fast. In order to win the battle against the epidemic as soon as possible, many places are racing against the virus and conducting rounds of nucleic acid testing.
There is a potential risk of an outbreak in Shanghai’s current round of the epidemic, and the fight against the epidemic is racing against time. As of 24:00 on the 28th, more than 8.26 million people have been screened for nucleic acid in Pudong, Punan and adjacent areas in Shanghai.
While everyone was fighting the epidemic together and actively cooperating with the closure, control and testing, a rumor spread in the circle to the effect that “the cotton swabs used for sampling have reagents on them, which are poisonous”, and some netizens even said that the elderly at home saw the relevant rumors Later, I did not want to participate in nucleic acid screening, and also asked the younger generation to try not to undergo nucleic acid testing and antigen testing.
What exactly are the cotton swabs used for nucleic acid testing and antigen testing? Are there any reagents on it? Is it really poisonous?
According to rumors, the cotton swabs used for nucleic acid detection and antigen detection sampling mainly include nasal swabs and throat swabs. The throat swabs are generally 15 cm long, and the nasal swabs are 6-8 cm long. Antigen detection kit manufacturers, Mohe Tang Rong, the person in charge of Medical Technology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., introduced that the “cotton swabs” used for sampling that you see are not the same as the absorbent cotton swabs we use every day. They should not be called “cotton swabs” but “sampling swabs”. Constructed of nylon short fiber fluff head and medical grade ABS plastic rod.
Sampling swabs are flocked with spray and electrostatic charge, allowing millions of nylon microfibers to attach vertically and evenly to the shank end.
The flocking process does not produce toxic substances. The flocking method allows the nylon fiber bundles to form capillaries, which is conducive to the absorption of liquid samples by strong hydraulic pressure. Compared with traditional wound fiber swabs, flocked swabs can keep the microbial sample on the surface of the fiber, quickly elute >95% of the original sample, and easily improve the sensitivity of the detection.
Tang Rong said that the sampling swab is produced for sampling. It does not contain any soaking reagents, nor does it need to contain reagents. It is only used to scrape cells and virus samples into the virus inactivation preservation solution for nucleic acid detection.
Shanghai citizens who have experienced “screening and screening” and “family stabs” have also experienced the testing process of sampling swabs: the testing personnel stretched the swab into the throat or nose and rubbed a few times, and then took a sampling tube in their left hand. , insert the sampled “cotton swab” into the sampling tube with the right hand, and with a little force, the head of the “cotton swab” is broken into the sampling tube and sealed, and the long “cotton swab” rod is discarded into the yellow medical waste trash can . When using the antigen detection kit, after the sampling is completed, the sampling swab needs to be rotated and mixed in the preservation solution for at least 30 seconds, and then the swab head is pressed against the outer wall of the sampling tube by hand for at least 5 seconds, thus completing the sampling of the sample. elute.
So why do some people experience mild sore throat, nausea and other symptoms after the test? Tang Rong said that this has nothing to do with collecting swabs. It may be due to individual differences, some people’s throats are more sensitive, or it may be caused by the operation of the testing personnel. It will be relieved soon after the collection is stopped, and it will not cause harm to the body.
In addition, sampling swabs are disposable samplers and are a class of medical device products. According to national regulations, not only production must be filed, but also strict production environment requirements and quality supervision standards are required. Qualified products must be non-toxic and harmless.
The “disposable sampler” is a general product in the medical field. It can sample different parts and is also used in different detection behaviors. It is not specially produced for nucleic acid detection or antigen detection.
Therefore, in terms of materials, production, processing, and inspection processes, sampling swabs have strict standards to ensure that they are non-toxic and harmless, and can be used with confidence.
Nucleic acid testing is an important means to stop the spread of the epidemic. When there are sporadic and multiple cases at multiple community levels, it is necessary to carry out large-scale nucleic acid screening of all staff multiple times.
At present, Shanghai is at the most critical stage of epidemic prevention and control. Don’t spread rumors, don’t believe in rumors, let us keep “Shanghai” with one heart, perseverance will win!