Fact Check: COVID-19 Nasal Swab Test Does Not Touch the Blood-Brain Barrier

Social media users share their posts because the nasal swab used to test COVID-19 is taking samples from the blood-brain barrier. This claim is false. According to the British Public Health Service, it is anatomically impossible for tests to reach the blood-brain barrier. Instead, the nasal swab used in the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test, the recommended test method in the United Kingdom, collects samples from the upper respiratory tract.

Posts have been shared over 1,000 times on social media. You can see an example here , here , here , here And here ..

Most of the examples in the post show an image of a nose swab overlaying a picture of the brain with text embedded on it. .. Where are you going […] The blood-brain barrier is where swab tests must be performed. match? ? ? I do not [sic] I think so. ”

The image has text attached to many Facebook posts. “If for some reason the blood-brain barrier is compromised, it becomes the leaky blood-brain barrier, the inflamed brain. Bacteria and other toxins can then enter the brain and infect brain tissue, causing inflammation and death. ”

The blood-brain barrier removes drugs and other substances in the blood so they can’t reach the brain. If the blood-brain barrier is broken, it is correct that the brain can be exposed to toxins. This is a long-term brain change ( here ).

But a British public health spokesperson told Reuters that the claim that the COVID-19 test needed to collect samples from the blood-brain barrier was not true. PHE said this was anatomically impossible. “There is no access to the brain in the respiratory tract or nasal passages. It would be impossible to touch the brain with a cotton swab without passing through the lamina cribrosa.”

The sieve plate forms the roof of the nasal cavity ( here ).

According to UK Government advice updated July 7, COVID-19 test samples should be taken from the upper respiratory tract ( here ).

Earlier false claims about PCR testing revealed by Reuters fact check here ..

verdict

No. It is anatomically impossible for the COVID-19 test to collect samples from the blood-brain barrier. Instead, target the upper respiratory tract.

This article was written by the Reuters Fact Check Team. Read more about our fact-based confirmation of social media posts here ..

Our criteria:Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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