<img src="https://sb.scorecardresearch.com/p?c1=2&amp;c2=6035250&amp;cv=2.0&amp;cj=1&amp;cs_ucfr=0&amp;comscorekw=Coronavirus%2CSouthampton%2CHealth%2CSociety%2CUK+news"> Skip to main contentSkip to navigation Skip to navigation
A woman receives a swab test
The current swab test is uncomfortable as it has to be taken from as far back as possible in the throat and nasal passages. Photograph: Murdo MacLeod/The Guardian
The current swab test is uncomfortable as it has to be taken from as far back as possible in the throat and nasal passages. Photograph: Murdo MacLeod/The Guardian

Coronavirus 'spit test' to be trialled in Southampton

This article is more than 3 years old

Government hopes new test will be more efficient and less uncomfortable than current swab method

A new “spit test” for Covid-19 is to be trialled on 14,000 key workers and their families in Southampton, the government has announced, in the hope that it will be both more acceptable and more efficient than the current test using a nasal swab.

People taking part in the trial will be able to be tested weekly by spitting in a pot, which they will either send off or have collected by Southampton University staff running the trial. They should get a result within 48 hours.

Saliva testing is far easier on people with suspected infection, who at the moment have to go to a testing centre or attempt to swab their nasal passages and the back of their mouth themselves using a test kit sent to their home. There is already routine regular testing of some health and care staff using swabs.

The procedure is uncomfortable: the swab has to be taken from as far back as possible in the throat and nasal passages, causing people to gag. It is thought the difficulty in obtaining samples is the main reason why the results of the swab tests have not always been accurate. One study showed that up to 29% of the swab tests can be wrong.

Announcing the trial, Matt Hancock, the health secretary, said: “Saliva testing could potentially make it even easier for people to take coronavirus tests at home, without having to use swabs. This trial will also help us learn if routine, at-home testing could pick up cases of the virus earlier.

“I am very grateful to everyone involved in the trial who is helping us develop our understanding of the virus, which will benefit not only our but the global response to it.”

Staff at GP practices, other essential key workers, university employees and their families will be among the first people to take part. Test kits will be delivered either to their homes or their workplaces every week. This regular routine testing of thousands of people will also shed some light on what proportion of people pick up the virus without showing any symptoms.

All those who take part must enrol with the test-and-trace system, so that the people they have been in contact with in the days before any positive test can be reached and asked to self-isolate.

The saliva test being piloted by the Department of Health and Social Care is produced by a UK molecular diagnostics company called Optigene, but the government is also looking at others.

The health department said: “We are currently exploring the potential of other no-swab, saliva-based coronavirus tests with companies including Chronomics, Avacta, MAP Science and Oxford Nanoimaging (ONI). We are also working with a number of suppliers, including DNA Genotek, International Scientific Supplies Ltd, Isohelix and other leading manufacturers, to develop bespoke saliva collection kits and scale up manufacturing for products that can be used with existing PCR tests.”

Saliva tests have looked promising for a while. In the US, the regulatory Food and Drug Administration has given emergency authorisation to such tests. They have an added advantage because saliva preserves the virus, so there is less urgency than with swabs, which have to be rushed to the lab.

Prof Keith Godfrey of the University of Southampton said: “The health, social and economic impacts of lockdown cannot be underestimated. Through this initiative we believe we can contribute to safely restoring economic activity within the city and region during national relaxation measures, whilst enabling people to regain their lives, work and education.”

The pilot will run for up to four weeks, testing people on a weekly basis. Participants for the pilot are being registered with self-testing, which is due to start next week.

More on this story

More on this story

  • Ancient tribunal to consider why lights on Southampton bridge are blue

  • Hong Kong protesters allegedly attacked by Chinese activists in Southampton

  • Local election in Southampton ward suspended after death of candidate

  • Two men receive suspended sentences over Emily Lewis speedboat death

  • Tributes paid to two Southampton nurses killed in US car crash

  • Men admit break-in at Hampshire zoo in which giraffes and tigers suffered

  • UK city of culture 2025: Southampton and Bradford among those on shortlist

  • Webcam catches meteor lighting up sky over Southampton, England – video

  • Family pays tribute to Hampshire girl killed in speedboat accident

Most viewed

Most viewed