Isolation period

[The Wookiee]

I am trying to find this out to settle an argument at work.

If you have tested positive and you isolate for the required 10 days from when your symptoms start.

Do you need to continue to isolate if you have another test at 10 days and it’s positive?

Please could post a link to this information.

Cheers

 

[beorhthelm]

yes. about a third way down.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publi...-19-infection-who-do-not-live-with-the-person

If your test result is positive, follow the advice for people with COVID-19 to stay at home and start a further full 10 day isolation period. This begins from when you took the PCR test, regardless of where you are in your original 10 day isolation period. This means that your total isolation period will be longer than 10 days.

 

[dazzer6666]

I am trying to find this out to settle an argument at work.

If you have tested positive and you isolate for the required 10 days from when your symptoms start.

Do you need to continue to isolate if you have another test at 10 days and it’s positive?

Please could post a link to this information.

Cheers

My understanding is not - I read about this a while back…..the scientists have basically failed to find anything contagious more than 9 days after symptoms first appear apparently so 10 days is deemed sufficient (it’s the accepted global standard). Government advice is a bit unclear though in that it doesn’t explicitly state that, or absolutely confirm you don’t need to isolate any longer.

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coron...ation-and-treatment/how-long-to-self-isolate/

How long you need to self-isolate

If you test positive, your self-isolation period includes the day your symptoms started (or the day you had the test, if you do not have symptoms) and the next 10 full days.

If you get symptoms while you're self-isolating, the 10 days restarts from the day after your symptoms started.

When to stop self-isolating

You can stop self-isolating after the 10 days if either:

you do not have any symptoms
you just have a cough or changes to your sense of smell or taste – these can last for weeks after the infection has gone

When to keep self-isolating

Keep self-isolating if you have any of these symptoms after the 10 days:

a high temperature or feeling hot and shivery
a runny nose or sneezing
feeling or being sick
diarrhoea

Only stop self-isolating when these symptoms have gone.

If you have diarrhoea or you're being sick, stay at home until 48 hours after they've stopped.

 

[The Wookiee]

yes. about a third way down.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publi...-19-infection-who-do-not-live-with-the-person

I can’t see that on the link

 

[dazzer6666]

yes. about a third way down.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publi...-19-infection-who-do-not-live-with-the-person

Ah….thanks…….ignore my post then as it’s incorrect………..interesting. Does this carry on endlessly ??

 

[The Wookiee]

yes. about a third way down.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publi...-19-infection-who-do-not-live-with-the-person

What to do if you develop symptoms of COVID-19 after your 10 days of self-isolation at home
If after 10 days of self-isolation you develop symptoms of COVID-19, stay at home, arrange to have a PCR test and follow Stay at Home: Guidance for households with possible or confirmed COVID-19.

If your result is positive, you must self-isolate for a further 10 days.

Looks like that’s only if you have symptoms.

What I need to know is if someone does a test at day 10 and it’s positive- do they need to isolate again ?

 

[beorhthelm]

Ah….thanks…….ignore my post then as it’s incorrect………..interesting. Does this carry on endlessly ??

yes, if you keep testing positive, keep isolating.

 

[The Wookiee]

yes, if you keep testing positive, keep isolating.

I still can’t find this as a definitive answer ?

 

[dazzer6666]

US requirements (accepting this is of no use to the OP)...but begs the question if someone has had it, and tested positive, and isolated, why would they re-test anyway ?

But what if someone still tests positive after 10 days? This is very common. People who have tested positive for COVID-19 are very likely to continue to test positive after 10 days. But they are not contagious.

People who have tested positive or who have been sick with COVID-19 often continue to test positive for up to three months. Even after your immune system neutralizes a virus (COVID-19 or almost any other virus), bits and pieces of the virus’s genetic material remain in your body — like DNA evidence left at a crime scene. These little viral remnants degrade over time. They can’t harm you, and they can’t infect anyone else, but they can cause you to continue to test positive. The CDC recommends that people not be retested for 90 days unless they have new symptoms. Your employer should not require that you test negative in order to go back to work.

Plus :

When can I get retested for COVID-19?
Please come see us if you develop symptoms of COVID-19 after a previous infection. We have a variety of testing options that can be used to accurately determine your COVID-19 infection status.

After your body has fought off a COVID-19 infection, the inactive viral matter may stay in your body for several weeks. During this time, molecular COVID-19 tests (PCR/NAAT) may return false-positive results. This means that your test may indicate that you have the illness, even though you have recovered and are not contagious. Unfortunately, this means that molecular COVID-19 tests are of limited value in the first several weeks after you have been infected. We do not recommend that you be retested for COVID-19 to prove that you have recovered.

 

[beorhthelm]

I still can’t find this as a definitive answer ?

i take it you're on the losing side of this argument

try this https://assets.publishing.service.g...961291/Stay_at_home_illustration_Feb_2021.pdf

 

[The Wookiee]

i take it you're on the losing side of this argument

try this https://assets.publishing.service.g...961291/Stay_at_home_illustration_Feb_2021.pdf

The scenario is this:

Our workplace got hit with Covid last week 8 people tested positive. (I wasn’t one of them)

The 10 day isolation period ends for most on Monday.

If they have no symptoms and they take a test and it’s still positive should they still isolate or can they come back to work on Tuesday?

Still can’t find an answer in this ?

 

[dazzer6666]

The scenario is this:

Our workplace got hit with Covid last week 8 people tested positive. (I wasn’t one of them)

The 10 day isolation period ends for most on Monday.

If they have no symptoms and they take a test and it’s still positive should they still isolate or can they come back to work on Tuesday?

Still can’t find an answer in this ?

Why would they take another test ? Unless they have developed symptoms, or got worse, they shouldn’t need to (NHS guidance is 90 days I think)

 

[The Wookiee]

Why would they take another test ? Unless they have developed symptoms, or got worse, they shouldn’t need to (NHS guidance is 90 days I think)

Because all staff do lateral flow tests 3 times a week.

So I now have some clarity, only do the test if you have symptoms and if positive isolate for a further 10 days.

If no symptoms no need to test and come back to work.

Thanks all for your help !