Ohio State University scientists have received approval from the Food and Drug Administration for two crucial components of COVID-19 testing. Officials say a lack of available tests has hampered efforts to fight the spread of the coronavirus.
Wexner Medical Center researchers working with the Colleges of Engineering and Dentistry used 3-D printers to produce 50,000 of the swabs used to take a sample from a patient's nose. Researchers also developed a formula for a sterile saline solution to transport the samples for testing. They have produced enough to preserve up to 30,000 test kits.
As Ohio Health Director Dr. Amy Acton and other health officials have said, testing is critical to identify who has COVID-19 so that they can be isolated, limiting exposure for the general population.
