Not everyone is a fan of swab reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests. The test involves inserting a cotton swab that’s around six inches in length into both of your nostrils—making sure that it reaches the cavity between your nose and mouth—and rotating it several times. The whole process might or might not hurt (a lot) or cause discomfort depending on your personal pain tolerance level.
There’s a simpler alternative to it now, though. On Jan. 25, the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) officially launched saliva testing for COVID-19. It is still an RT-PCR test, but the organization says that it is “non-invasive and less stringent” and only requires you to spit in a vial. Once the sample is collected through this process, it will take around three to four hours to produce results.
The Department of Health (DOH) already gave the saliva testing its approval, following a pilot study involving a review of 1,000 samples. In the pilot study, there were 17 positive cases that saliva testing was able to detect—compared to nine from swab tests. Several studies have also been made about the effectiveness of saliva RT-PCR tests. One research showed that it has a slightly lower detection rate compared to nasopharyngeal swab and/or oropharyngeal swab tests, “but without reaching statistical significance.”
Starting today, you can book a saliva RT-PCR test via the Philippine Red Cross’ website here. Payment for the test is also done online, while the testing will be conducted at the organization’s Mandaluyong and Port Area laboratories only. Costing P2,000 per test, it is cheaper than the usual RT-CR swab test available commercially. That’s because the process uses less equipment and reagent and, according to Senator Richard Gordon, the price may even decrease if more people avail of the test.
But before other laboratories are allowed to conduct saliva RT-PCR testing, the DOH wants to see the results of the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine’s validation tests.
