What's your threshold for PCR testing?

[TheVampiresWife]

Are you testing for very mild cold symptoms, for example, even if multiple LFTs are negative? Or do you stick to the three 'official' symptoms listed?

I have ridiculous sinuses and if I PCR'd every time I had a bunged up/slightly runny nose I'd be forever isolating. I do LFTs two or three times a week (daily if I'm having a sinus flare) though.

DD had a very, very mild cold last week (slight runny nose/a bit stuffy first thing, no illness as such) and did daily LFTs (all negative).

How do you decide when to PCR?

I would absolutely PCR a child with a mild cold (who does not have the sinus issues?). Covid IS mild in kids.

I stick to the official symptoms. And I don’t test my kids, it’s basically impossible to swab a toddler and I refuse to pin her down to do it every time she has the sniffles.

well previously I might not have tested for mild cold symptoms but we all have covid at the mo and it's been like a cold for us.

Dp had it first with headache, congestion and runny nose for a couple days.

Ds had similar for just one day. He was sneezy, snotty was very bunged up. None of the main three.

Dd is asymptomatic so far, maybe a little snotty but she has allergies anyway.

I have it now and it feels exactly like a head cold. I have and sinuses too and covid has really flared mine up.

@newnameanon19

I would absolutely PCR a child with a mild cold (who does not have the sinus issues?). Covid IS mild in kids.

DD is 24

Sorry, should've mentioned.

I've got a cold at the moment, DS14 had same last week. We've done LOTS of LFTs, all negative, I don't believe they'd all be wrong. Only symptom is streaming nose, so I'm happy with my decision not to get PCRs.

The official symptoms - temperature, cough, changed/lost sense of taste and smell.

If I had other symptoms that might be a presentation of covid, then I would LFT

@AD80 that's interesting. Were your LFTs positive?

Hope it stays mild for you all!

For the kids (mine are young, and sticking that thing up their nose is traumatic for me and them) I've stuck to the main 3 symptoms.

For me, I took one when I started feeling ropey - scratchy throat, low energy. I'd had multiple negative lateral flows, but received a positive PCR result.

Its tough one ds had covid 2 months ago and he just has runny nose and sore throat , no symptoms when tested as picked up on LFT he was doing twice weekly for college, symptoms showed a day or two later and lasted approx 2 days at most
This last couple days he has a slight sore throat and runny nose started this morning and recommended don't test for 90 days
We did do a lft today though which was negative though, but been advised if I take him for a pcr it might show positive from last infection still and he would have to isolate again even if not covid , they told me only test him again if he has cough, temp or loss of sense smell and few other things
So keeping him hime until he is well which appears to be gping that way as sore throat he said has gone - seems worSe in mornings and not so bad as day goes on , snotty nose isn't as bad as this morning as i thiNK LFT didn't help
He also says doesn't feel the same as when he had covid ,

I tested positive PCR with only a sore throat. I knew I'd been a close contact of someone with covid. I think the government advice on when to get a PCR needs to change.

I have covid just now. It started like a mild head cold on Friday, negative test Saturday, bit achey and tired on Sunday, woke up feeling fresh on Monday and got a positive ltf and then pcr.

I'm feeling ok now, just mildy hungover. I'd never have identified this as covid without the initial ltf. I was so shocked I woke my children up with my nooooooo wailing!

Its a shame the LFT's are not more accurate as so much easier to do those when feeling unwell with anything rather than the rigmarole of a pcr
The testing guidelines do need to change though but then again this time next year I wonder if we will still even be testing at all ?
But then so many have none or mild symptoms going about that you just never know who has it or not and we can't all test daily just incase

I do regular LFTs so that I can attend my hobby, and as long as those continue to be negative I'm happy to only do a PCR if I get one of the three main symptoms.

@EmmaStone

I've got a cold at the moment, DS14 had same last week. We've done LOTS of LFTs, all negative, I don't believe they'd all be wrong. Only symptom is streaming nose, so I'm happy with my decision not to get PCRs.

DD did LFTs from several different batches, and two kinds, which were all negative last week. When me and DH had covid in September, all our LFTs (again, from different batches/different kinds) were positive.

If you were positive at least one LFT out of five or six (different batches at that) would probably pick it up, surely?

Obviously if I was really symptomy I'd PCR, but for symptoms I have regularly (ie sinus inflammation, slightly runny nose, nothing else) I'll just stick to thrice weekly (at least) LFTs. I would literally have to PCR almost daily throughout winter otherwise.

We LFT fairly often, I only PCR if we have known contact. For example I recently PCR for DS who had a sore throat and a slight temperature, and a girl on his table at school was positive.

Cold if they feel a bit unwell with it

I log with Zoe and they usually ask you to test if you log the up to date symptoms:

covid.joinzoe.com/post/what-are-the-symptoms-of-covid

[quote TheVampiresWife]@AD80 that's interesting. Were your LFTs positive?

Hope it stays mild for you all![/quote]
Dp who got it first was a close contact. He was testing for a few days due to that and he had an instant positive on lft but that was before symptoms started.

Ds didn't tests positive on lft. In fact he didn't twice on pcr when he had symptoms. Took a few days for to be positive.

I showed positive on lft day before new symptoms started but I had been ill the week previous with covid like symptoms and all tests negatives. No one is sure if I had covid heeeek before with negative tests or two different viruses. Neither test and trace or my doctors are sure (wouldn't have rang the doctors, they rang me after I tested positive as I'm somewhat vulnerable - I'm fine though!).

Dd has had positive lft and awaiting on pcr. She doesn't really have symptoms. She gets allergies badly so s always snotty anyway and still has a cough from a non covid virus a month ago!

So likelihood is that an lft would pick it up if your dc had covid. These newer lateral flows seem to be more effective than the old ones.

Colds are rife at the minute!

I've only "referred" myself for one PCR when I was full of a cold. It felt very much like a classic cold but then a lot of people were reporting the Delta variant had started with sneezing and a runny nose so i went for a test to be certain (it was negative). The others I've had were all through tracking on the Zoe symptom study app and I had to stop reporting anything that was likely to be hayfever related in the summer or they'd have had me there every other day!

I had a bad head cold, I did an LFT for an event though and it was positive, so I did a PCR then.

I wouldn't have done one otherwise at all because I never presented with one of the 3 main symptoms.

Sticking to the official list for pcrs. I do lft before higher risk situations anyway eg choir. Everyone at work is now boosted and my boss and I are pretty laid back about the situation anyway, of the "we need to get on with life" camp. Colds always were dangerous for immunocompromised people, covid 19 was novel so none of us had even partial immunity hence how serious it was at first, now we have had vaccinations we are at a similar risk factor to general seasonal illnesses

I used to use the Zoe app but it was telling me to test every day! I'm also on have an autoimmune condition and am on medication whose effects can mimic symptoms the Zoe app tells you to PCR for - headaches, fatigue, aches and so on.

When you have various other conditions/are on meds which mimic covid symptoms almost daily, regular LFTs are really the only way to go (unless you have symptoms which aren't what you're used to, of course). Several times weekly PCRs just aren't feasible.

@catnidge

I tested positive PCR with only a sore throat. I knew I'd been a close contact of someone with covid. I think the government advice on when to get a PCR needs to change.

I agree I had symptoms but tested negative on both LFT and PCR but then got pinged by track and trace a couple days later and as my symptoms were worse (originally thought a bad cold due to negative) I did another PCR and then it was positive.

Also my main symptom (and others I know) was sneezing, it’s not down as an official symptom but I’ve heard it’s common in vaccinated people. Again this isn’t official and probably should be.

Luckily I wasn’t well enough to go out between my negative and positive but officially I could have as I got a negative.

@Hellohah

I had a bad head cold, I did an LFT for an event though and it was positive, so I did a PCR then.

I wouldn't have done one otherwise at all because I never presented with one of the 3 main symptoms.

That’s it, unless you’re LFT testing or have been pinged it’s easily missed.

I've only done them when I've had one of the three main symptoms. Same for my kids.