Free AAMA Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) Practice Question

A nasopharyngeal swab is used for collecting specimens from the uppermost part of the throat, behind the nose. It is commonly employed to test for respiratory viruses, such as the flu or COVID-19, because these pathogens infect the respiratory tract. It's a specific method of sample collection that requires insertion through the nostril for proper specimen capture, unlike other methods that involve different body sites or fluid types.