MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

China has begun using anal swabs for high risk population

Officials took anal swabs from residents of neighborhoods with confirmed Covid-19 cases in Beijing last week, broadcaster CCTV said

AFP – Anal swabs are being used in China to test those it considers at high risk of contracting Covid-19, state TV reported. According to doctors, the invasive procedure is said to be more effective in detecting the virus.

Officials took anal swabs from residents of neighborhoods with confirmed Covid-19 cases in Beijing last week, broadcaster CCTV said, while those in designated quarantine facilities have also undergone the test.

Small, localized outbreaks in recent weeks have seen multiple cities in northern China sealed off from the rest of the country and prompted mass testing campaigns - which up until now have mostly been conducted using throat and nose swabs.

But the anal swabs method “can increase the detection rate of infected people” as traces of the virus linger longer in the anus than in the respiratory tract, Li Tongzeng, a senior doctor from Beijing's You'an Hospital, told CCTV.

Users of China's popular Twitter-like Weibo social media platform reacted to the method with a mix of mirth and horror

“So lucky I returned to China earlier,” one user wrote. “Low harm, but extreme humiliation,” another said, using a laughing emoticon.

CCTV said on Sunday (Jan 24) anal swabs would not be used as widely as other methods, as the technique was “not convenient.”