UKH

My wife tested positive on the 6th of January with a LFT. The next days PCR also came back positive. She tested positive with a LFT on the 12th of Jan, and is still positive today. Her 10 days isolation are up tomorrow (Sunday the 16th) 

Not sure what to do.

Edit; No symptoms now, just tiredness, and I never caught it.

In reply to arch:

Aren't people generally meant to keep to themselves until no longer positive (with that being behind the ten day guidance)?

In reply to arch:

I think Timmd is right, but if you are in doubt why not contact her GP for advice?

In reply to Timmd:

Not to my understanding of the NHS or the Government websites. Your free to go after ten days as long as symptom free and no temperature. 

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-stay-at-home-guidance/s...

In reply to arch: Do the guidelines talk about 'even if still testing positive', or do they talk about it being fine to stop isolating ten days after testing positive if symptom free and without a temperature?

I'm not out to be difficult, but I can't help thinking about concern from medics about people spreading covid without knowing they have it, due to being symptom free. I find myself thinking about a business person I know of & my teenage self, both looking for enough ambiguity for something to be 'not technically disallowed'.

If it's not explicit about being able to go out after ten days even if still testing positive, I guess that doesn't mean that medical advice wouldn't still be against anybody doing that...

In reply to arch:

You do not need to take any more LFD tests after the 10th day of your self-isolation period and you may stop self-isolating after this day. This is because you are unlikely to be infectious after the 10th day of your self-isolation period. Even if you have a positive LFD test result on the 10th day of your self-isolation period you do not need to take any more LFD tests after this day and you do not need a follow-up PCR test. If you are concerned you may choose to limit close contact with other people, especially those who are at higher risk of severe illness until 14 days after the start of your self-isolation period.

Copied from Gov.uk website.

In reply to arch:

Fair enough. That's interesting to know. 

In reply to arch:

 

Another positive test this morning, but according to the NHS and the Government websites, my wife is ok to end her isolation tomorrow. No symptoms or temperature.

We're at a bit of a loss as to what to do. None of our friends have had this situation so it's why I've asked on here.

In reply to arch:

Personally, if LFT is still positive I would still isolate. I would probably also want to speak to Dr about why my body wasn't clearing the infection. My understanding of LFT is that it is positive when you are at peak infectiousness, whereas PCR will pick up fragments of an old infection which is no longer "live". Maybe I haven't understood that right? 

In reply to arch:

We have had this situation. The LFTs are potentially sensitive to viral material for a while after you are no longer infectious. This tends to happen in older individuals or people who’ve had more symptoms. It’s not a sign you’re still infectious. The vast majority are not infectious after 10 days since first positive. 14 days covers 99.9% I think. Hence 10 days is mandatory and 14 is super safe. I have read papers about this it’s not just my opinion, but I don’t have time to dig them out again (and there’s probably 2000 new ones since I last looked!)

In reply to arch:

Take off and nuke the wife from orbit. It's the only way to be sure!

In reply to minimike:

Agreed I was told that once positive, the lateral flow tests can remain positive for three months after even though your no longer infectous!

In reply to girlymonkey:

LFTs pick up the virus in the nose and (if you swab it) throat, which is where it needs to be to effectively spread, being a respiratory infection (if it was possible you'd also swab the lungs, I guess, but it obviously isn't).  In essence a negative LFT means you are unlikely to be contagious, but a weak positive may not mean you really are.

PCR can indeed pick up non-contagious "fragments".

In reply to steveej:

I think that’s for PCR. LFTs could in principle I guess, but that length of time would be very rare unless immunocompromised in some way..

but what is being discussed here is positivity and infectiousness shortly after the standard isolation window, which is well evidenced to be very low.

In reply to arch:

I tested + on day 9 and again on day 12. But I went back to work on day 13 (a Monday).

This was following the advice of Prof Jason Leitch who said in an interview on Reporting Scotland (Wed 5th or Thu 6th Jan) that once the ten day isolation period is ended you may go about your normal business unless you still have a high temp. Tiredness and lingering cough (as I still have today on day 19) are not a reason to continue your isolation, and LFDs can still give a + reading for some weeks, although that is unusual.

Jason

In reply to arch:

Personally if still positive I’d keep isolating.  

In reply to arch:

It’s a common situation. 

In reply to arch:

 

This is the Scottish advice from the NHS inform Scot website of what to do after the initial 10 days isolation following a positive test - take from it what you will as the last part, to me, doesn’t seem to mention anything about what to do if you are remaining positive with tests. That though was, as someone else mentioned, covered on tv that you are “free” after the initial 10 days as long as you don’t have a fever.

Staying safe if you’ve ended self-isolation

If you’re someone who can end self-isolation, you should:

limit close contact with other people outside your household, especially in enclosed spaces, for 10 days

wear a face covering in enclosed spaces and where you cannot maintain physical distancing

limit contact with anyone who is at highest risk for 10 days 

not visit people in care homes, hospitals, prisons or other detention centres for 10 days, unless essential and agreed with staff in advance

continue to take part in twice weekly lateral flow device (LFD) testing after the 10 days

If you've tested positive, count the 10 days from the date your symptoms started, or the date of your test if you do not have symptoms. If you're a close contact, count the 10 days from the date of your last contact with the positive case.

In reply to arch:

It would help if the symptoms list was up to date, just about everyone I know who has tested positive recently (myself included) had what felt like a heavy head cold. 

I had a occasional cough, no temperature, still tasted and smelled fine (well after a few days in my onsie under a blanket I smelled rank and probably tasted the same) 

In reply to arch:

Glad to hear that you and your wife are ok despite her catching the dreaded Rona Arch

In reply to arch:

Negative. Finally. 👍

In reply to arch:

You're allowed freedom after a clear test on day six, if it's clear (otherwise it's ten days), and a clear test 24 hours after the first clear test.

I was still testing positive on day 9, slightly, by day 10 I was done anyway.

In reply to arch:

Useful thread, thanks. Me and husband are on day 7 and still testing strong positives and I was wondering about day 10. Not that I have anything more risky planned than dog walking once I'm allowed out.

We have reason to believe we got a rather big dose of it given how we got it, I wonder if that makes a difference. We've both been knocked off our feet for the past week.

In reply to Hutson:

Not sure. My daughter had it very mild and was totally back to normal after 3 days, but continued testing positive up to day 10, much to her frustration.

In reply to arch:

You need to differentiate between being positive and being contagious. You may still test positive after day 10, but its not an issue, as according to the advise, you are no longer contagious. I had exactly the same conundrum last week after testing positive on NYD.  I still tested positive on day 11 so I did restrict contacts, but according to Gov.UK you should be fine. I did read somewhere that its not worth taking another test for 6 months or so. 

In reply to Mick r:

and different brands of tests give different results, we found…. 

In reply to arch:

Still positive is quite common

I tested strong positive until Day 12, my partner till Day 11.

In reply to steveej:

Not true. That's pcr tests (which can detect dead viral fragments) not lfts (which detect whole virons)

In reply to arch:

Isolation rules are based on averages. 98% of people have low enough viral load at day 10 to mean they are no longer infectious. That means 2% are potentially still infectious, which would give a positive lateral flow result. Whatever the law says, I would advise caution.