Does she need a test or not

[CaviarAndCigarettes]

I'm sorry friends I am so confused with all of this so would welcome some advice.

We have all had a cold. The lovely bright green snot type. Three year old caught it last. She now has a chesty cough alongside the snotty nose. It's not continuous and she is clearly shifting something.
None of us have had a temperature at any point.

Does she need to be tested?

[H1978]

Yes I would, I’ve known people who have tested positive but not had temperatures, just coughs and body chills.

[Bedsheets4knickers]

No she doesn't

[Torvean32]

No i dont think she needs tested. You've said yourself it's not a continuous cough.

Far too many ppl wanting tests for non continuous coughs.

[YoBeaches]

No

[AvoidingRealHumans]

There's no tests available even if she needed one so I would treat the symptoms at home and see how she goes

[CaviarAndCigarettes]

Okay. Is the process different for under 5 year olds?

[CaviarAndCigarettes]

I can keep her off nursery

[Umbridge34]

@Torvean32

No i dont think she needs tested. You've said yourself it's not a continuous cough.

Far too many ppl wanting tests for non continuous coughs.

I wouldnt necessarily say its people "wanting" it, more they need the test so their employers, or as is massively the case at the moment, their schools will allow them to return.
My nephew coughed a few times at school and was sent home pending negative test. Barely a cough out of him since according to my sister.

[SallySeven]

No

[CaviarAndCigarettes]

This is what concerns me. She is absolutely fine. No change in taste. No temperature just a nasal drip type cough

[CaviarAndCigarettes]

I wouldn't even give Calpol for it

[Ironfloor269]

No.

[lifesalongsong]

No

[User27aw]

No. My ds has a cough and cold. His school asked me to phone 119 to check whether his cough was classed as continous. 119 told me a continous cough is coughing non stop without a break for about an hour.

[CaviarAndCigarettes]

@User27aw that is reassuring. She is coughing a couple times an hour and maybe three or four times at night. Each cough lasts a few seconds and you can hear it is wet

[FallingIguanas]

"119 told me a continous cough is coughing non stop without a break for about an hour."

That's interesting. Was this from a nurse or call advisor @User27aw? If this is the case, it would be helpful to update the guidance to this effect. There is so much confusion around what defines a coughing episode.

[Ohyeahs]

NO

[Umbridge34]

@User27aw

No. My ds has a cough and cold. His school asked me to phone 119 to check whether his cough was classed as continous. 119 told me a continous cough is coughing non stop without a break for about an hour.

I know several people who had covid and by that definition would fit the symptoms. They had coughs but it certainly wasn't non stop for an hour.

[Umbridge34]

Wouldn't fit the symptoms I meant

[PurpleDaisies]

119 told me a continous cough is coughing non stop without a break for about an hour.

Or three or more coughing episodes in a day.

She is coughing a couple times an hour and maybe three or four times at night.

That sounds like it could be classed as a continuous cough.

This really needs some clearer guidance really.

[Popcornriver]

I believe the cough is a dry, non productive one. Or that's what I was told. It's really tricky because there's a chance they'll be sent home anyway for having a cough and right now it's impossible for many to get a test to confirm one way or the other. It's a really crap position the government has put parents in. Nobody wants to be responsible for passing covid around the school and possibly infecting vulnerable people and nobody wants to isolate for two weeks for nothing. They need to release further guidelines on the cough I think.

[Swiftnicola]

I tried to clarify with NHS111 what a coughing episode was, but they couldn’t tell me. I wanted to know if an episode included a single cough each time or whether it had to be say 5 minutes of solid coughing for example.

[PurpleDaisies]

I believe the cough is a dry, non productive one.

Not necessarily. About a third have a productive cough.

[Mippi]

Yes, if she has a cough she needs a test.

Snotty, no temperature and an occasional cough can still be Covid.

[Fast90]

@Mippi what are you talking about? The government and NHS criteria for testing is clear, a continuous cough. What evidence based resource are you using to advise a test for an ‘occasional’ cough? This kind of clap trap is in large contributing to the lack of available tests