A new study has found that children are capable of self-swabbing for COVID-19. The pandemic appears to be over because the world seems to be returning to normal, but there are still cases all over the world. Those who are high-risk are still being cautious, and this may include families with children.
Rapid tests have been the go-to for a lot of families to screen themselves for the virus, however, it can be hard to test a child. They may fight it, run away, or it could turn into a large ordeal when it should only take 30 seconds. One of the solutions parents have thought of is to get children to swab their own noses.
Children may feel like they have more control over the nose swab, and it may make it easier for them. However, mom may be worried that it is not an accurate test, and they won't get a proper result. According to Medical Xpress, a study has found that school-aged children can self-swab for the virus.
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The study was done by National Institutes of Health, and it can be read in full here. The study found that with age-appropriate instructions, school-aged children are able to use a nasal swab to get their own test specimens.
The researchers stated that this could be implemented in schools or other areas where children need to be tested. Having adults do it can be difficult, and take up resources. However, children as young as 4 can test themselves with instructions that are easy for them to understand.
To complete this study, they enrolled almost 200 children who all had symptoms of COVID-19. Before they asked the children to self-swab, they showed them a short video on how to do it, and the video was designed for younger children.
They were also given written instructions and pictures, and then they were told to swab their noses. After they had done it, a healthcare professional also swabbed their noses, and all the tests were sent in to be tested. What they found was that the self-collected samples and the ones that were done by nurses agreed 97.8% of the time. This means that the children were able to collect an appropriate sample, and it was accurate. The accuracy was actually better than a lot had anticipated. For a mom who struggles with getting her child tested, this may be a great alternative.
Sources: Medical Xpress, JAMA Network