Kory Kirkegaard, DDS, is using the 3D printer at his practice to create nasal swabs for COVID-19 tests, according to FOX 4.
Dr. Kirkegaard is a dentist at Overland Park, Kan.-based The Art of Dentistry. With his practice closed except for emergency patients, Dr. Kirkegaard has transitioned to assist healthcare workers.
"These nasopharyngeal swabs are 10 inches or so –– tall or long. They'll take about 24 hours to print 300 or so of them. Once you print them, you clean them. Then, you process them and get them ready," he told FOX 4.
Kansas health officials are looking to purchase nasal swabs from dental offices with 3D printers in an effort to increase the state's COVID-19 testing capacity. The first swabs will be used at drive-thru testing sites.