Coronavirus FAQ: Why are some folks hacking home COVID tests by swabbing their throat?
The FDA-authorized tests call for a nasal swab. Some doctors are tweeting that they're doing a throat swab too — though they don't recommend this step to the public. Here's a look at the swab debate.
Lots of folks on Twitter say that swabbing your throat in addition to your nose may be a better way of using your COVID-19 testing kit to detect the omicron variant. Is this true?
If you've used a do-it-yourself COVID-19 home test in the U.S. — the "antigen" rapid tests that promise results in 15 minutes or so — you know the drill. You typically swirl a cotton swab around in your nostrils, mix it with some liquid and then drop it on a test strip to await the results: positive or negative for the coronavirus.
But in recent weeks, there has been an online debate about where to stick that cotton swab.
