A more secure and effective method for throat swab collection: The importance of adequate exposure of oral cavity in COVID-19 specimen collection.

Objectives: This study aims to propose a novel and effective throat swab collection method for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Methods: The subjects were randomly divided into two groups. The subjects were asked to open their mouth to make "ah" sound (traditional method) or simulate yawn (improved method) for throat swab collection. The usage of tongue depressor, collection time, adverse reactions and subjective discomfort (VAS score) were compared. The collection time, comprehensive indicators of adverse reactions and VAS score were also compared among three collectors.

Results: The tongue depressor was less used in the improved group (χ = 40.186, P < 0.01). The average collection time of the traditional group was 5.44 ± 2.97 and that of the improved group was 4.00 ± 2.31 (P < 0.01). The subjects in the improved group had fewer and milder adverse reactions. The VAS score of subjects in the improved group was lower than that in the traditional group (P < 0.01). Among different collectors, the collection time, comprehensive indicators of adverse reactions and VAS were the same as the overall trend.

Conclusion: Simulating yawn is a safer and faster throat swab collection method.