COVID-19 Test from Start to Finish: How Does it Work?

(Image: Pixabay CC0) Testing for COVID-19 has rapidly scaled up in the past months, thanks to better availability of testing material and the introduction of new testing strategies. The Swiss TPH Travel Clinic and Diagnostic Centre offer SARS-CoV-2 PCR and antibody tests in Basel, Switzerland. Did you ever wonder what laboratory work is actually involved, when you take a Corona test? The following steps demonstrate how a SARS-CoV-2 PCR test is carried out with all the labour-intensive steps in the laboratory that it entails. Patient getting a nasopharyngeal swab. People can come to Swiss TPH for a COVID-19 test if they are symptomatic (only employees and their relatives) or asymptomatic for travel purposes (all people). When a person comes to Swiss TPH, they get a nasopharyngeal and throat swab. It is important to take both swabs in order to have the highest chance to detect potentially present viruses.