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People may soon be able to use mouthwash to test whether they have Covid instead of the invasive nasal and throat swabs.
Scientists have found that a 'gargle lavage' mouthwash test is just as accurate at the nasopharyngeal swabs currently used to detect if a person has Covid and is also a much simpler process.
The test involves the patient gargling a solution as you would with mouthwash and then spitting it out into a cup where it can be analysed.
The study, carried out by the University of Konstanz, in Germany, involved 80 participants of whom 26 tested positive for Covid when tested with a swab.
Scientists at German university found a mouthwash test, which involves gargling a solution before spitting it out into a cup to be tested, is as reliable as a nasal swab (stock picture)
