The coronavirus test isn’t as scary as it looks

Pictures and illustrations of a coronavirus test might look unnerving.

But medical experts emphasize the procedure — which is a common test for respiratory infections — is absolutely normal.

Though testing is still limited in places, if you have symptoms of COVID-19 — the respiratory disease caused by this vigorously spreading coronavirus — there’s no reason to avoid the test. Testing is critical to help contain the spread of the contagious microbe. Called a “nasopharyngeal swab,” it requires a health professional to insert a cotton swab (like a long Q-tip, but thinner) through your nasal passage, reaching all the way to the back of your throat. Read more…