Stool samples could replace anal swab tests for COVID-19, according to a Chinese medical expert.

China recently started conducting anal swab tests on the public, sparking opposition from foreign countries. Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Kato Katsunobu demanded exemption from the tests for Japanese citizens through its embassy in Beijing.

More sensitive and accurate in detecting COVID-19 when compared to nasal swabs, anal swab tests conducted by immigration officers can prevent import cases at once and stop local outbreaks, said Lu Hongzhou, professor and co-director of Fudan University’s Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center.

Anal swabs, however, could be replaced by testing stool samples to alleviate the discomfort of immigration officers conducting the tests, Lu said.

With flights from Japan to Beijing still under restrictions, most Japanese people would have to fly to Dalian or Shanghai to enter China. They must quarantine in hotels and have their nasal samples taken on the third and seventh days. Nasal, anal and environmental samples would be taken on the 14th and 21st days.

Not everyone entering China via Shanghai would need to take anal swabs. It would depend on their health conditions, the test results of others on their flights and whether they were from or passed through countries where the pandemic is severe.

Those entering Beijing must also have nasal, anal and environmental samples taken and tested.

A man who flew to Xiamen from the Middle East last month said he was not asked to take an anal swab test during his quarantine and only did nasal swabs.

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