Research and Development of a Device for Nasopharyngeal Swabs for Rapid Testing of the Novel Coronavirus
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Abstract
Objectives: To develop specimen collection equipment for SARS-CoV-2 detection able to collect the specimen from an appropriate position with an adequate quantity and to test the equipment in a laboratory. Methods: Research procedures included systematic literature review, expert brainstorming, equipment invention, and laboratory testing of the equipment. Information from literature review and brainstorming was collected and used to design a prototype device. After the preliminary test of the device, the collected information was sent back to the experts for independent review until the final design of the prototype was selected and ready to be constructed. The device was invented by a certified device manufacturer with expertise in device invention under the supervision and inspection of an engineer. A test was conducted in a laboratory by applying the device to a human nose model with the nose, nostril, nasal cavity and sinuses. Results: Device prototype A was able to access nasopharynx and extract the whole amount of specimen required. The average collected volume of specimen was 1.71±0.25 mL from 100 replicas of test. Conclusion: The output of this study is a prototype device to collect specimens from the nasopharynx for COVID-19 testing. The prototype is also ready to be produced and tested in clinical settings.
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ผลการวิจัยและความคิดเห็นที่ปรากฏในบทความถือเป็นความคิดเห็นและอยู่ในความรับผิดชอบของผู้นิพนธ์ มิใช่ความเห็นหรือความรับผิดชอบของกองบรรณาธิการ หรือคณะเภสัชศาสตร์ มหาวิทยาลัยสงขลานครินทร์ ทั้งนี้ไม่รวมความผิดพลาดอันเกิดจากการพิมพ์ บทความที่ได้รับการเผยแพร่โดยวารสารเภสัชกรรมไทยถือเป็นสิทธิ์ของวารสารฯ
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