Thought of the Day - March 11 - Anal Swabbing

You didn't think I could let this one slip past, did you? Off and on over the last month, the press has been abuzz with the news concerning COVID arrival procedures in China. Unfortunately, there has not been any further insight as of late but I just couldn't skip the opportunity to fill you in on the gory details.

Reports say China is requiring some travellers arriving from overseas to receive an invasive anal swab test as part of its coronavirus containment measures. FYI, the tests involve inserting a cotton swab 3-5cm into the anus and rotating it. It has been reported that Japan and the US have both registered a protest, requesting their citizens be exempt.

It is not clear how many such swab-tests have been administered or who is subject to them. Chinese state media has acknowledged that some arrivals to cities including Beijing and Shanghai are required to take the tests, the requirements might vary depending on whether the travellers were deemed to be high-risk.

It is documented that traces of the virus survive longer in the anus than in the respiratory tract and therefore that samples from the latter may be less prone to false negatives. However, as infectious spread really comes from the respiratory system detecting residual anal traces may not be a useful way of measuring if a person is still contagious.

Given that China has imposed some of the strictest containment measures in the world, including barring most foreign arrivals, and has largely suppressed the epidemic, maybe we want to add this "anal-swabbing" practice to our new arrivals regimen ( Thought of the Day - February 22 - New Quarantine Measures ). If nothing else it may be very effective in supporting the objective of reducing international travel.

Cheers

Cliff