Having patients collect their own nasal and throat swabs is a reliable alternative to healthcare worker-collected specimens for the detection of SARS-CoV-2, Australian pathologists say.

A study published preprint has found that the collection methods had comparable sensitivity, prompting the Public Health Laboratory Network to update its testing guidelines on Tuesday to include patient-collected combined nasal and throat swab as a “suitable specimen”.  

Co-author Dr Jenny Robson, pathologist in charge of Sullivan Nicolaides’ department of microbiology and molecular pathology in Brisbane, said the findings showed the patient-collected nasal and throat swabs had high levels of concordance with healthcare worker specimens.

“We believe they are as good as each other,” she told Australian Doctor.