Patent Description:
The diagnosis of infections of the upper respiratory tract can be performed by testing the nasal secretion collected either from the nasopharyngeal or the olfactory area using a small normally flexible stick provided with a sterile cotton swab at a respective end, commonly called "nasopharyngeal swab". The stick must be flexible and, operatively, the swab is inserted in a nostril and pushed horizontally to reach the nasopharyngeal area or pushed upwards to reach the olfactory area until it encounters resistance. In particular, the protocols establish that to take significant samples from the nasopharyngeal or olfactory area, the swab must be inserted in a nostril, pushed right into the corresponding nasal cavity and wiped over the nasopharyngeal lymphatic tissue for <NUM> seconds using the stick. Obviously a minimum distraction in use of the swab, for example excessive pressure, risks causing damage to the portion of tissue from which the sample of biological material, namely the nasal secretion, is taken. It is known that the nasal mucosa is a very delicate anatomical structure, the surface of which is covered by the mucociliary system; the function of the latter is to protect the organism from external agents that could be inhaled, for example but not limited to pathogens and/or polluting substances. Since it takes one month or more for the mucosa to repair the damage, an interruption of the mucociliary system would open a passage to external agents during the days following use of the swab.

From the above description it is evidently highly recommended for the swab to be carried out by an expert operator, with a good knowledge of nasal anatomy and the ability to identify the anatomical conformation of the nasal cavity of the patient to be examined, in particular in the presence of a deviation or a low crest of the nasal septum which could cause pain and/or loss of blood due to the trauma caused by the swab.

Furthermore, it is obvious that in emergency situations, for example but not limited to a full-blown pandemic, in which the number of individuals to be examined is particularly high and well exceeds the number of expert operators for carrying out the swab in the nasopharyngeal or olfactory area, there is the risk, on the one hand, of the number of samples being too low to provide a rapid reliable picture of the infection levels, and on the other hand, of the information resulting from analysis of the swabs not faithfully representing the infection situation. In both cases the resulting situation is highly unsatisfactory, since public health is at stake. Furthermore, it is important to consider the aspect of operator safety, since the operator, to introduce the swab into the nasal cavity, must necessarily be positioned very close to the patient and therefore, if the swab is carried out on asymptomatic positive individuals or individuals already presenting symptoms of infection, the operator risks being infected, as has already occurred in many cases. In these cases, the operator must necessarily wear personal protective clothing and equipment able to fully cover his/her body; on the other hand, considering that said clothing/devices are of the disposable type, in addition to being subject to the supply chain risk, they represent a very important cost item in terms of purchase and relative disposal.

Examples of collectors according to the pre-characterising portion of claim <NUM> are known from <CIT>.

In view of the situation described above, a device that is practical to use and has a limited cost would be desirable, allowing biological samples to be taken, autonomously and effectively, not only from the nasopharyngeal and olfactory area, but also from the mucosa of all the anatomical structures present inside both the nasal cavities and from all the lymphatic tissue present in the nasopharynx, with the result of eliminating the risk of infection of the health care workers who would no longer be involved in the phase of withdrawing quantities of nasal secretion.

It is evident that although the nasal secretion collection devices limit and overcome the typical drawbacks of the known art illustrated above, allowing new operating protocols to be defined for the sampling and analysis of nasopharyngeal/olfactory nasal secretions of numerous groups of people in complete safety and with a high degree of reliability, these devices and the methods of use thereof need to be further improved to ensure increasing reliability of the laboratory and rapid tests carried out on liquid samples of even only a few drops isolated by means of said devices.

The present invention concerns a collector. In particular, the present invention refers to a collector for collecting a liquid resulting from a nasal wash. In further detail, the present invention refers to a collector for collecting a liquid resulting from a nasal wash pre-arranged to facilitate the performance of diagnostic tests.

The above drawbacks are solved by the present invention according to at least one of the following claims.

Also, a method is provided for identifying pathogens contained in a liquid resulting from a nasal wash, the method comprising a step of feeding said liquid to a duct and, from there, conveying it to a first test tube connected to said duct in a fluid-tight manner; said method, being said step of conveying said liquid to a first test tube, comprises a step of concentrating said pathogens contained in said liquid in filtering means contained inside said duct.

According to said method as described above, the method comprises a step of using said liquid retained by said filtering means to carry out tests for the identification of said pathogens.

According to said method as described above, said step of using said liquid is preceded by a step of pressing said filtering means to collect a liquid with high concentration of pathogens in a second test tube. According to said method as described above, said duct extends between an inlet and an outlet portion of a collector for said liquid; said outlet portion being arranged to couple in a fluid-tight manner with said first test tube and/or said second test tube through respective mouths; said filtering means comprising a swab; said step of concentrating said pathogens being preceded by a step of installing, in a stable manner, said swab inside said duct through said inlet.

According to said method as described above, said step of concentrating said pathogens comprises a step of allowing said liquid to flow along said duct through said swab.

According to said method as described above, said step of conveying said liquid to said first test tube is followed by a step of removing said swab from said duct and by a step of squeezing it into said second test tube.

According to said method as described above, said duct comprises a mesh downstream of said inlet to axially delimit a longitudinal cavity of given extension; said step of conveying said liquid into said first test tube being followed by a step of removing said first test tube from said outlet portion, by a step of coupling said second test tube to said outlet portion and by a step of pressing said swab against said mesh to extract a liquid with high concentration of pathogens in said second test tube.

According to said method as described above, said mesh is arranged at a distance from said inlet which approximates by default a longitudinal dimension of said swab; a funnel-shaped body being arranged upstream of said duct and connected in a fluid-tight manner to said inlet; said step of feeding said liquid to said duct is preceded by a step of collecting said liquid in said funnel-shaped body following said nasal wash.

According to said method as described above, said step of pressing said swab against said mesh comprises the step of pushing said swab against said mesh using a presser.

According to said method as described above, said swab is contained inside a basket provided at the bottom with a mesh base and made entirely of deformable material; said basket having gripping means designed to facilitate the handling thereof when, in use, it contains said swab.

According to said method as described above, said step of installing, in a stable manner, said swab inside said duct through said inlet is preceded by a step of inserting said swab inside a basket made entirely of rigid material and provided at the bottom with a mesh base; said basket having a flared annular edge; said gripping means comprising a manipulation rod coupled to said edge.

According to said method as described above, the method comprises a subsequent step of removing said basket containing said swab containing said liquid from said duct, a step of housing said basket containing said swab with said annular edge in contact with a mouth of said second test tube and a step of compressing said swab against said mesh base using a presser.

According to said method as described above, said step of installing said swab in a stable manner inside said duct through said inlet is preceded by a step of inserting said swab inside a basket made entirely of deformable material; said method comprising a subsequent step of inserting the assembly of said basket and said swab containing said liquid inside a third test tube with flexible walls so as to squeeze said swab between said flexible walls and collect the liquid which impregnates said swab in said third test tube.

According to said method as described above, said swab is produced exclusively in one, or in a combination of at least two, of the following materials: cotton, natural silk, artificial silk, non-woven fabric.

According to said method as described above, said swab has a cross section geometrically similar to a cross section of said longitudinal cavity and dimensionally approximates by excess said cross section of said longitudinal cavity.

According to said method as described above, said swab has any one of the following shapes: spherical, cylindrical with parallel bases; cylindrical with a concave base having hemispherical or frustoconical shape; cylindrical with a convex base and having hemispherical or frustoconical shape.

According to said method as described above, said swab is of nasopharyngeal type.

According to some embodiments of the present invention, a collector is provided for collecting a liquid resulting from a nasal wash, said collector comprising a funnel-shaped body which terminates in a duct that extends between an inlet and an outlet portion provided with coupling means arranged to couple in a fluid-tight manner with a test tube through a respective mouth; said duct has filtering means for filtering said liquid.

According to an embodiment of said collector as described above, said filtering means comprise a mesh arranged inside said duct downstream of said inlet to axially delimit a longitudinal cavity of given extension.

According to an embodiment of said collector as described above, said filtering means comprise a nasopharyngeal swab provided with a manipulation rod or a filtering swab having longitudinal extension exceeding the axial extension of said longitudinal cavity and cross section that approximates by excess a transverse dimension of said longitudinal cavity.

According to an embodiment of said collector as described above, said filtering swab is pre-arranged to be contained inside a basket provided at the bottom with a mesh base and made entirely of deformable material; said basket having gripping means designed to facilitate the handling thereof when, in use, it contains said swab.

According to an embodiment of said collector as described above, said filtering swab is pre-arranged to be contained inside a basket made entirely of a rigid material and provided at the bottom with a mesh base; said filtering swab having a flared annular edge; said gripping means comprising a gripping rod coupled to said edge.

According to an embodiment of said collector as described above, said filtering swab and/or said nasopharyngeal swab is made exclusively in one, or in a combination of at least two, of the following materials: cotton, natural silk, artificial silk, non-woven fabric.

According to an embodiment of said collector as described above, said duct has a cylindrical shape and said filtering swab has any one of the following shapes: spherical, cylindrical with parallel bases; cylindrical with a concave base having hemispherical or frustoconical shape; cylindrical with a convex base having hemispherical or frustoconical shape.

According to an embodiment of said collector as described above, said longitudinal cavity is cylindrical and has a cross section with diameter measuring a length ranging from <NUM> to <NUM>.

According to an embodiment of said collector as described above, said collector comprises a first front wall and a second rear wall that extend in a fluid-tight manner from said funnel-shaped body to a different extent between two sides of said body and are facing each other; said second wall being delimited at the top by a concave curved stretch designed to shape-couple, in use, with a facial anatomical portion arranged between the upper lip and the nose of the user.

According to an embodiment of said collector as described above, one of said first wall and second wall has a housing for a rod.

According to an embodiment of said collector as described above, said funnel-shaped body is divided into two parts by a partition arranged between said first wall and second wall.

According to an embodiment of said collector as described above, at least one said side carries an interface elongated transversally to said partition and shaped to house a syringe provided with a nasal nozzle designed to feed washing liquid to a nostril of the user's nose or another feeding device (<NUM>).

According to an embodiment of said collector as described above, said funnel-shaped body has a collection tank (<NUM>) on the same side as said interface.

Further characteristics and advantages of the collectors produced by applying the teachings of the present invention will appear clearer from the following description, provided with reference to the attached figures which illustrate at least one non-limiting example thereof, in which identical or corresponding parts of the collector are identified by the same reference numbers. In particular:.

Before describing in detail the preferred embodiments of the present invention or details thereof, it should be noted that the relative protective scope is not limited to the particular embodiments described below. The disclosure and description in the present document illustrate and explain one or more embodiments and variations currently preferred, and it will be clear to persons skilled in the art that various changes in the design, organization, order of operation, means of operation, structures and position of the apparatus, methodology and use of mechanical equivalents can be made without departing from the the invention.

Furthermore, it must be understood that the attached figures have the purpose of clearly illustrating and disclosing embodiments currently preferred to one of the persons skilled in the art, but they are not drawings that illustrate how said embodiments should be carried out in practice or real representations of end products; on the contrary, said figures can comprise simplified conceptual views to facilitate understanding or allow for an easier quicker explanation. Furthermore, the relative dimensions and arrangement of the components can differ from those shown and still operate according to the invention. It will also be evident that various directions such as "upper", "lower", "left", "right", "front", "rear" and so on apply only with respect to the explanation in combination with the drawings and that the components can be oriented differently, for example during transport and production, and during operation. Since many different and distinct embodiments can be provided according to the concepts taught here, and since multiple modifications can be made to the embodiments described here, the details provided below must be interpreted as illustrative and not limiting the the invention.

In <FIG> the number <NUM> indicates, overall, a collector for collecting a liquid resulting from a nasal wash, where said collector <NUM> comprises a funnel-shaped body <NUM> (<FIG>) terminating in a duct <NUM> which extends along an axis AX between an inlet <NUM> and an outlet portion <NUM>, provided with cylindrical coupling members <NUM> for a test tube <NUM>. Said coupling members <NUM> comprise a cylindrical seat <NUM> (<FIG>) which extends approximately to the level of the inlet <NUM>. Said seat <NUM> is shaped in a conjugated manner with the mouth <NUM> of the test tube <NUM> to house it in such a way as to entirely collect the liquid resulting from the nasal wash; to facilitate filling of the test tube <NUM>, which can be easily accomplished when the air contained in it can leave space for the liquid, the bottom of the seat is provided with spacers which prevent the edge of the mouth <NUM> from adhering point by point to the bottom of the seat.

Considering that normally the test tubes <NUM> are axisymmetric and the respective mouths <NUM> are cylindrical, the duct <NUM> and the respective seat <NUM> have been designed cylindrical, even though it should be noted that this design choice is not essential for producing the invention, which will be fully implemented even when the duct <NUM> has a cross section of another shape, likewise the test tubes <NUM> used in combination with the duct <NUM> and the coupling members <NUM> of the outlet portion <NUM>. The diameter of the duct <NUM> at the outlet portion <NUM> can be expediently in the range <NUM>-<NUM>, to couple with test tubes of standard size.

It should be noted that, for the sake of practicality, the test tubes considered as a reference to illustrate the embodiments of the present invention have so far been and below will always be indicated by the reference number <NUM>, all having the same shape at least with reference to the respective mouth <NUM>, without limiting the scope of the present invention.

With particular reference to <FIG>, the collector <NUM> comprises a first front wall <NUM> and a second rear wall <NUM> which extend in a fluid-tight manner from the funnel-shaped body <NUM> to a different extent between two sides <NUM> of the body <NUM> and face each other; the second wall <NUM> is delimited at the top by a concave curved stretch <NUM> designed to shape-couple, in use, with a facial anatomical portion arranged between the upper lip and the nose of the user.

With particular reference to <FIG>, <FIG>, the funnel-shaped body <NUM> is divided into two parts by a central partition <NUM> which lies on a plane M (<FIG>) parallel to the axis AX and is arranged between the first wall <NUM> and the second wall <NUM>. The funnel-shaped body <NUM> furthermore has a collecting tank/well <NUM> with solid bottom on the side opposite the axis AX with respect to the partition <NUM>, arranged to collect an excess of washing liquid that has not passed to the other nasal cavity and, therefore, is expelled from the same nostril into which said liquid has been delivered.

With particular reference to <FIG>, at least a side <NUM> carries an interface <NUM> elongated transversely to the plane M and to the axis AX and shaped to house a syringe <NUM> to whose outlet nozzle a nasal dispenser <NUM> is coupled by means of an L-fitting (<FIG>), where the function of the dispenser <NUM> is to feed washing liquid through the nasal vestibule of a nasal cavity of a user when, in use, the user with head inclined forward below the shoulders brings the collector <NUM> with the axis AX inclined by the same angle, with the respective concave curved stretch <NUM> into contact with the skin of the portion of face between the upper lip and the nose to prepare for washing, via the dispenser <NUM>, of the corresponding nasal cavity, the nasopharynx and opposite nasal cavity on the other side of the nasal septum.

The situation illustrated in the attached figures wherein the duct <NUM> is arranged on the right of the partition <NUM>, therefore on the side opposite to the interface <NUM> for the syringe <NUM>, and to the well <NUM>, is due exclusively to the fact that the majority of people are right-handed and find it easier to operate the syringe <NUM> with their right hand; this choice is therefore not designed to limit the scope of the present invention which is implemented in exactly the same way in collectors in which the position of the interface <NUM> and of the duct <NUM> are inverted, thus being adapted for use preferably by people who find it easier to use their left hand.

It should be noted that the washing liquid supplied by the syringe <NUM> can consist exclusively or partly of a physiological saline solution or another liquid or solution of any other type, based on the directions of the doctor or the manufacturer, without affecting the protective scope of the present invention.

With particular reference to <FIG>, the duct <NUM> has filtering members <NUM> designed to retain any pathogens contained in the liquid after the nasal wash. Here and below, the term "pathogens" refers and will refer, individually or in combination, to: virus, bacteria, fungi and/or any other type of pathogenic microorganism responsible for the onset of disease in the host organism. Said filtering members <NUM> comprise a mesh <NUM> which is arranged inside the duct <NUM> downstream of the inlet <NUM> which axially delimits a longitudinal cavity <NUM>' of given extension. Only in <FIG> an enlargement is shown of a version in which the mesh <NUM> has a plurality of arms <NUM> arranged radially starting from a central portion provided with a hole <NUM>, which has the purpose of maximizing the size of the outlet area of said mesh <NUM>.

With particular reference to <FIG>, the filtering members <NUM> comprise a removable swab <NUM> arranged inside the cavity <NUM>' preferably in contact with the mesh <NUM>.

Operatively, it should be noted that, according to user preferences, the swab <NUM> can have a longitudinal extension approximating by excess or by default the axial extension of the cavity <NUM>' and a cross section approximating by excess a transverse dimension of said longitudinal cavity <NUM>'. Naturally, if the swab <NUM> has a longitudinal extension which approximates by excess the axial extension of the cavity <NUM>', in use, the respective upper portion will engage the body <NUM>.

The transverse dimension of the swab <NUM> will therefore be proportional so as to engage the cross section of the longitudinal cavity <NUM>' with peripheral interference, in order not to allow seepage of the nasal wash liquid collected in the funnel-shaped body <NUM>. Therefore, considering the increased size of the section with respect to the section/diameter of the longitudinal cavity <NUM>', the transverse dimensions will be at least in the range <NUM>-<NUM>.

Below an application of the swab <NUM> is described in which said swab has a longitudinal extension exceeding the extension of the cavity <NUM>' without limiting the scope of the present invention.

The swab <NUM> can be produced in any material able to filter the liquid resulting from a nasal wash to retain as far as possible any pathogens, including viruses, that may be removed from the nasal cavities crossed by the washing liquid. Said materials must also have the characteristic of being compressible but at the same time tending to return to their original undeformed configuration, completely filling the space in which they were pressure-inserted, in this case the cavity <NUM>'. For the sake of practicality, but without limiting the scope of the present invention, each swab <NUM> can be produced exclusively in one, or in a combination of at least two, of the following materials: cotton, natural silk, artificial silk, non-woven fabric.

Furthermore, the swab <NUM> can have any of the following shapes (as can be seen beside each of the <FIG>): spherical, cylindrical with parallel bases, cylindrical with a concave base having hemispherical or frustoconical shape, cylindrical with a convex base having hemispherical or frustoconical shape, or any other shape, also irregular, and dimension that allows the cavity <NUM>' to be completely engaged when the swab <NUM> abuts against the mesh <NUM> and has a respective free end (on the side of the funnel-shaped body <NUM>) at a level slightly higher than the connection between the duct <NUM> and the funnel-shaped body <NUM>, so as to prevent seepages of liquid.

Due to its shape, in use, the swab <NUM> can be inserted in the cavity <NUM>' at the back of the mesh <NUM> with a tweezer and, after completion of the nasal wash, once the liquid resulting from the nasal wash has been filtered, and therefore any pathogens present have been concentrated inside the swab <NUM>, the latter is impregnated with said liquid and can be removed using a tweezer.

Operatively, once the liquid resulting from the nasal wash has been discharged below the swab <NUM>, the latter is impregnated with said liquid saturated with pathogens and there are two possible methods of completing the procedure: - the swab <NUM> is removed by means of the tweezer from the cavity <NUM>' and placed in a test tube, the walls of which are deformable, so that by squashing the walls of the test tube, the filtered liquid in which the swab <NUM> is soaked is squeezed, causing the outflow of any pathogens present, - the swab <NUM> is gripped with a tweezer provided with concave tips which, when brought together, squeeze the swab; this can be done vertically over the mouth of a test tube or other container.

A more practical solution could entail the use of a basket <NUM> which is delimited by a peripheral surface substantially identical to that of the cavity <NUM>' like the one illustrated in <FIG>. Said basket <NUM> is provided with a mesh bottom <NUM> (<FIG>) and a gripping member which can be provided by handles <NUM> to facilitate handling in general but above all when the basket <NUM> contains, in use, the swab <NUM>.

Differently, the basket <NUM> could be rigid and provided with a flared annular edge <NUM> (illustrated funnel-like by a broken line again in <FIG> for the sake of economy of drawing) the maximum outer dimension of which should be greater than the cross section of the cavity <NUM>' to limit the insertion depth of the basket <NUM> inside it. To said edge <NUM> a rod <NUM> could be coupled, which would facilitate handling of the basket <NUM>, relative insertion into the cavity <NUM>', with or without the swab <NUM> contained in it, and extraction from said cavity <NUM>' at the end of washing with the swab <NUM> contained in it. In order to facilitate handling of the basket <NUM>, the front wall <NUM> of the collector <NUM> can have a housing <NUM> (shown in <FIG>, <FIG>) which, in use, keeps the rod <NUM> away from the user's nose.

It should be noted that the swab <NUM> contained in the basket <NUM> can have any shape, as can be seen in <FIG>, in which two swabs <NUM> are shown, one cylindrical identified by the reference number <NUM> and one spherical, shown by a dot-dash line, identified by the reference number <NUM>'.

With reference to the basket <NUM> the following configurations are possible:.

The use of the collector <NUM> described above is easy to understand and does not require further explanations. With particular reference to <FIG>, it should be noted that through the use of the collector <NUM> it is possible to implement a method for diagnosing the presence of any pathogens inside the nasal and nasopharyngeal cavities by examining the result of the washing liquid delivered inside the nasal and nasopharyngeal cavities. The washing liquid will be dispensed through the syringe <NUM> housed in the interface <NUM> and provided with the nasal dispenser <NUM> as illustrated in <FIG>, <FIG>. In this regard, firstly, the collector <NUM> can be used to carry out a step of collecting the liquid resulting from the nasal wash, in sequence, in the funnel-shaped body <NUM>, in the cavity <NUM>' of the duct <NUM> and from here in a first test tube <NUM>, and using the liquid collected in said container to perform a test of any type. In the case of diagnosis of the SARS-CoVid <NUM> virus, also known as Covid-<NUM>, this liquid is suitable for performing antigen and PCR tests.

Operatively, the collector <NUM> must be provided with a first test tube <NUM>, a swab <NUM> having any one of the shapes described above inserted in the longitudinal cavity <NUM>' until it abuts against the mesh <NUM> and a syringe <NUM> coupled with the respective interface <NUM> provided with the respective dispenser <NUM> and filled with washing liquid. Once the user has inclined his/her head forward as described above, the collector <NUM> has been positioned with the concave curved stretch <NUM> of the second wall <NUM> shape-coupled with the facial portion arranged between the upper lip and nose, the dispenser <NUM> has been introduced inside the right-hand nasal vestibule, due to the particular shape of the collector <NUM>, so that the outer wall of the dispenser <NUM> adheres to the inner wall of the nasal vestibule to create a seal, at this point the user can operate the plunger of the syringe <NUM> thus dispensing the washing liquid contained in it.

As is known, the washing liquid will be diffused inside the right-hand nasal cavity filling it completely and then spreading, through the nasopharyngeal area, which is the site of the lymphatic tissue, into the second nasal cavity, filling it completely. In particular, the volumetric quantity that exceeds the volume of the right-hand nasal cavity, will flow into the left-hand nasal cavity and then, by gravity, into the funnel-shaped body <NUM>, on the left of the partition <NUM>. From here, the liquid resulting from washing of the two nasal cavities crossed will percolate through the swab <NUM> contained in the cavity <NUM>' and from here under the mesh <NUM> below. The percolated liquid will therefore be filtered by the swab <NUM> which will have retained inside it any pathogens present in the liquid resulting from the nasal wash. Subsequently, the percolated liquid, substantially free from pathogens, will continue by gravity its flow into the test tube <NUM> below. The more compacted the component material of the swab <NUM>, the slower the percolation of the liquid through the swab <NUM>; this characteristic of the swab <NUM> will determine the respective capacity to filter and therefore to concentrate any pathogens present in the liquid that impregnates said swab <NUM>.

It is easy to understand that, due to the filtering capacities of the swab <NUM>, the higher the filtering capacity of the swab <NUM>, the lower the pathogen content of the test tube <NUM>. Therefore, in the event of a choice between whether to carry out tests on the content of the test tube <NUM> or on the liquid absorbed by the swab <NUM>, it will make sense to perform the test on the liquid contained in the swab <NUM>. To collect said liquid, a further new test tube <NUM> of rigid type can be used which will replace the first test tube <NUM> coupled with the outlet portion <NUM> of the collector <NUM> at the beginning of the nasal wash. Consequently, the liquid contained by the first test tube <NUM> can be eliminated. In particular, the presser <NUM> can be used to compress the swab <NUM> inside the longitudinal cavity <NUM>' against the mesh <NUM> so as to squeeze the liquid retained to feed it to the new test tube <NUM>. Therefore, on the bottom of this new test tube <NUM> a small quantity of liquid will collect with a high pathogen concentration. The compression of the swab <NUM> by means of the presser <NUM> will be all the more effective if the respective plate <NUM> is geometrically similar to the cross section of the longitudinal cavity <NUM>', since in said case all the part of the swab <NUM> exposed towards the funnel-shaped body <NUM> will undergo compression, avoiding the risk of the swab <NUM> splashing filtered liquid, therefore ensuring hygiene and prevention of infection. Naturally, if the basket <NUM> is rigid as described above, the test tube that will be used to house the basket <NUM> and the relative swab <NUM>, in order to collect the liquid retained by the latter, will also be rigid and said liquid can be transferred into the test tube by squeezing the swab <NUM> by compressing it against the mesh bottom <NUM> with the presser <NUM>.

Alternatively, in the presence of a new test tube <NUM> with pressure-deformable cylindrical wall, once the swab <NUM> has been removed from the duct <NUM>' with a pair of tweezers, said swab <NUM> can be inserted in the new test tube <NUM>, a dripper cap applied and the flexible walls of the test tube squashed repeatedly on the swab <NUM>, so as to cause outflow of the concentrated liquid retained by the swab <NUM>; said liquid will collect on the bottom of the new test tube <NUM> together with the concentrated pathogens. Differently, if the swab <NUM> is contained inside the basket <NUM> and the respective circular wall and respective mesh bottom <NUM> are flexible, once the liquid resulting from the nasal wash has been filtered, the basket <NUM> containing the swab <NUM> soaked in pathogen-concentrated liquid can be removed using the handles <NUM> of the basket or the respective rod <NUM>; the assembly of the basket <NUM> and swab <NUM> can be inserted in a further new test tube <NUM>, this time provided with flexible walls so that the swab <NUM> can be squeezed between the flexible walls of the test tube <NUM> and the liquid that impregnates it can be collected in the bottom of the second test tube <NUM> with the pathogens contained in it.

At this point, having collected the filtered liquid in a new test tube <NUM>, to highlight the presence of SARS-CoV-<NUM>, or any other pathogens, it will be possible, alternatively or subsequently, to apply a dripper cap to the new test tube <NUM> and deposit at least one drop of the filtered liquid inside the small groove of a device pre-arranged to carry out the rapid antigen test, apply a sealing cap and send the new test tube <NUM> to a laboratory for the PCR test of the remaining filtered liquid.

Lastly, it is clear that modifications and variations can be made to the collector <NUM> described and illustrated here without departing from the protective scope of the present invention.

For example, with reference to <FIG> the collector <NUM> can be modified to be used in combination with swabs <NUM> (<FIG>) having a decidedly smaller transverse dimension, like those for the nasopharynx and/or the oropharyngeal cavity, where the diameter ranges from <NUM> to <NUM>. Naturally, to be able to apply the method described above to this type of collector, the duct <NUM> has to have an appropriate diameter, therefore in the range <NUM>-<NUM> to contain the swab <NUM> with its filtering part slightly compressed inside the longitudinal cavity <NUM>'. This type of swab <NUM>, normally provided with a rod <NUM> to facilitate handling, can be used to provide, by squeezing, limited quantities of liquid suitable for performing antigen tests, or inserted inside test tubes with flexible walls and squeezed to perform PCR tests. In order to facilitate handling of the swab <NUM> during the nasal wash, it is useful for the front wall <NUM> of the collector <NUM> to have a housing substantially identical to the housing <NUM> of <FIG>, <FIG> and, for this reason, indicated by the same reference number, the function of which is to keep the rod <NUM> away from the user's nose. In these cases, it may be useful to add a small quantity of physiological solution (approximately <NUM>-<NUM>) to the liquid extracted from the swab <NUM> to facilitate the formation of drops for the performance of rapid tests.

In addition, the collector <NUM> can be modified in such a way as to present two interfaces <NUM> arranged on opposite sides with respect to the partition <NUM>, one for each side <NUM> and, naturally, the body <NUM> can be symmetrical with respect to the partition <NUM>, therefore be provided with two ducts <NUM>, each provided with the outlet portion <NUM> and, therefore, without the well <NUM> but suitable for carrying two test tubes <NUM>, as described in the application <CIT>.

It should be noted that the method described above based on the use of a swab <NUM> to filter the liquid resulting from a nasal wash has the following advantages with respect to use of the same swab for direct sampling of nasal secretion from the nasopharyngeal lymphatic tissue carried out by health workers. Said sample can be taken only in a given and limited area of the nasopharyngeal tissue and, given the very small size of the absorbent part of the swab <NUM>, the quantity of nasal secretion removed is also very small.

Differently, the use of a swab <NUM> with the methods described above or a swab <NUM> in association with the collector <NUM> of <FIG> offers the following advantages:.

Consequently, the quantity of pathogens concentrated in the swab <NUM> or <NUM> is strictly correlated with the quantity of nasal washing liquid which is dispensed to the right-hand nostril, in the version of the collector <NUM> described with reference to the attached figures, without limiting the scope of the present invention. On the other hand, the use of a syringe <NUM> with volume larger than or equal to <NUM> could result in the drawback of the assembly of the collector <NUM> and syringe <NUM> being difficult to handle for some users. To overcome this drawback the syringe <NUM> can be replaced with a liquid feeder <NUM> that can be seen in <FIG>, which has a cylindrical body <NUM> that carries at least a cylindrical portion <NUM> of adequate diameter for engaging in a stable manner the interface <NUM> in a conjugated manner. Naturally, the feeder <NUM> carries the nasal dispenser <NUM> by means of an L-shaped fitting <NUM> and on the opposite side has a feed inlet <NUM> to which an outlet tube <NUM> can be coupled (a part of which is illustrated by a broken line) of a known and not illustrated bag of the type, by way of non-limiting example, sold under the name "Lavonase" by Purling S. , designed to contain at least <NUM> of nasal washing liquid. Naturally, the volume of the liquid resulting from the nasal wash will be decidedly greater than that discharged from the nostril opposite the one to which the washing liquid is delivered using a syringe, therefore it would be expedient to replace the first test tube <NUM> with an outlet bag provided with an inlet shaped similarly to the mouth <NUM> of the test tube <NUM> to make it couplable, in a fluid-tight manner, with the outlet portion <NUM>, in particular with the cylindrical coupling members <NUM>, or with a container of any other type.

Based on the above description, it is easy to understand that the collector <NUM> solves in a simple inexpensive manner the drawbacks typical of the state of the art illustrated above, in addition to allowing for the definition of new operating protocols for the sampling of nasopharyngeal/olfactory nasal secretion of numerous groups of people to be analysed in complete safety and with a high level of reliability, maximizing the probability of encountering the presence of pathogens in the liquid resulting from the nasal wash, via both antigen and PCR tests.

Claim 1:
A collector (<NUM>) for collecting a liquid resulting from a nasal wash, said collector (<NUM>) comprising a funnel-shaped body (<NUM>) which terminates in a duct (<NUM>) that extends between an inlet (<NUM>) and an outlet portion (<NUM>); said collector comprising a first front wall (<NUM>) and a second rear wall (<NUM>) which extend in a fluid-tight manner from said funnel-shaped body (<NUM>) to a different extent between two sides (<NUM>) of said funnel-shaped body (<NUM>) and face each other; wherein said second wall (<NUM>) is delimited at the top by a concave curved stretch (<NUM>) designed to shape-couple, in use, with a facial anatomical portion arranged between the upper lip and the nose of the user; the collector (<NUM>) characterised in that said funnel-shaped body (<NUM>) is divided into two parts by a partition (<NUM>) arranged between said first wall (<NUM>) and second wall (<NUM>); and further characterised by the outlet portion (<NUM>) being provided with coupling means (<NUM>) pre-arranged to couple in a fluid-tight manner with a test tube (<NUM>) through a respective mouth (<NUM>).