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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To ignore positive PCR

95 replies

whatshouldIdoo · 26/12/2021 18:21

The whole family unit had Covid a month ago and all have recovered.
Last week a close friend tested positive for Covid and so I booked us all in for a PCR as we had seen her.
However you are not supposed to have a PCR in the 90 days after having Covid:

"Not testing within 90 days of a positive COVID-19 test will avoid unnecessary isolation. It is possible for PCR tests to remain positive for some time after COVID-19 infection as the test can pick up inactive viral fragments (which are not infectious)."

As you can probably guess, one of the kids came back with a positive result.

AIBU to ignore that as we should never have taken the test?

I appreciate I will get flamed for not checking this before doing the test.
If I'm honest I knew there was guidance not to do a PCR within 90 days of Covid. I wrongly assumed the reason was that you were unlikely to be infected again in that period. In my mind I felt that we could have had Delta a month ago and then possibly have Omicron and wanted to have an all clear before seeing any relatives.
Now the results have come back positive I have looked into it more and realise I've been an idiot for going for the test and the reason for not giving PCRs to people within 90 days of infection is the high number of false positives due to left over non-contagious viral fragments. I accept I've been a bit of a twat wasting resources going for the test and wish I hadn't.

All lateral flows have been negative for all of us.

So my question is AIBU to ignore the result of the PCR test (that we should never have had) and presume it is a false positive as within 90 days of infection?

OP posts:
TheGoogleMum · 26/12/2021 18:25

I think you can ignore it as it is known pcr and lft can have false positives for a while after covid (which is why they don't recommend testing). If your child has symptoms there's no way of reliably knowing if they have covid again so soon but it's unlikely

AndSoFinally · 26/12/2021 18:27

Well that's the trouble, isn't it? You have no way of knowing if it's a true positive or a false positive.

Strictly speaking, now you've done it you need to isolate, even though it's possibly unnecessary. As the website says, not testing for 90 days will avoid you having to isolate unnecessarily, with the implication being that if you do test then you have to isolate for a positive.

Annoying, but lesson learned I guess

Aquamarine1029 · 26/12/2021 18:28

Your child could have had Delta a month ago and Omicron now.

CrocodilesCry · 26/12/2021 18:29

You need to self-isolate.
There's a chance you all had Delta, and DC (presume unvaccinated) now has Omicrom - and if that's the case you may all also come down with it over the coming days as it's much more transmissible.
It's the only responsible thing to do. Really hope you all stay well.

GaolBhoAlba · 26/12/2021 18:41

If public health guidance is 90 days then follow that guidance (not unqualified internet opinion!) and presume its a residual positive.

Crazydoglady1980 · 26/12/2021 18:56

I think you need to be careful as legally your DC needs to isolate as they have now had a positive PCR.

thing47 · 26/12/2021 19:03

@Crazydoglady1980

I think you need to be careful as legally your DC needs to isolate as they have now had a positive PCR.
It's actually not quite as cut and dried as that, you can explain to Track and Trace that the most recent PCR test was within the 90-day window and therefore it could be a 'false positive'. Track and Trace do understand the concept of false positives.

The question in your case, OP, is whether that is definitely what it is, or whether it could be a new infection?

TweeBee · 26/12/2021 19:12

Are you in England? One of my DC had a cough, almost 90 days lost PCR. When I looked it up to see if I should do another PCR, it said infections of different variants are possible within 90 days and so to repeat PCR for any new symptoms. Did your child have symtpoms this time?
Hopefully test and trace will be helpful to you and can discuss this further.

astockingforme · 26/12/2021 19:13

You are advised to PCR if you have symptoms within 90days so it's not as simple as just don't test within 90days.
If your son has any symptoms of illness I'd isolate, I'd probably isolate for a few days to monitor him. It's not common to have a positive that weeks after having covid if you are otherwise well. I don't think anyone knows enough about omicron to know if infection so soon after delta is possible. My son tested positive twice with two different variants but there were months in-between.

Siameasy · 26/12/2021 19:13

Yanbu and don’t PCR with no symptoms in future.

Seeline · 26/12/2021 19:14

I think legally you can't ignore it.
The positive result is in the system, and test and trace will treat it as such.

By the way, if you get new symptoms within 90 days, a new test should be taken.

WeRTheOnesWeHaveBeenWaitingFor · 26/12/2021 19:15

Does he have symptoms? If so I’d isolate. If not I don’t think I would. Might not socialise with someone clinically vulnerable though.

ILoveMyMonkey · 26/12/2021 19:18

If you weren’t prepared to isolate if they came back positive why did you bother getting pcrs in the first place?

Moolia · 26/12/2021 19:21

The guidance is not to retest within 90 days unless you have new symptoms. My DS had new symptoms, having tested negative on LFT after his previous covid infection, within 6 weeks he got ill again and LFT went strongly positive. PCR positive.

Entirely possible that you can have anew infection within 90 days.

Nocutenamesleft · 26/12/2021 19:40

As someone said.

You’ll never know if it’s a false positive or an actual positive and morally you can’t just ignore it.

Legally you can’t either.

Waxonwaxoff0 · 26/12/2021 19:48

You can't ignore a positive result. They will legally have to isolate.

Justwingingit2005 · 26/12/2021 19:50

I was told you don't pcr within 90 days but if symptoms develop you do the self isolation period again.

Iggly · 26/12/2021 19:51

You can develop covid again - the advice is to retest within 90 days if you develop new symptoms.

Cherrytart23 · 26/12/2021 19:52

Why did you even test when you knew you shouldn't have?

Original poster
whatshouldIdoo · 26/12/2021 19:52

I answer to those who asked if our kid has symptoms, no they haven't (none of us have).

OP posts:
musicalfrog · 26/12/2021 19:52

No I wouldn't have even bothered testing if no symptoms.

Queenie24 · 26/12/2021 19:58

Surely LTF tests are ok as is that not what you have to do at the end of your 7 days isolation and have 2 negatives before going out?

Original poster
whatshouldIdoo · 26/12/2021 20:03

@Cherrytart23
Yes in hind sight we shouldn't have. To be honest as the 90 day 'no PCR after covid unless new symptoms' rule came in before the Omicron variant was around, I felt that perhaps the guidance wasn't up to date with the science and it was safer to double check that we definitely didn't have covid before mingling with relatives.

Once we had a positive result I looked into the science behind this rule (and the guidance is there because of the risk of false positives) and realise it was stupid of us to go and do it.

Yes admittedly it would have been better for me to research all of this before going for the test, but with all the pre Xmas stuff that all families do that wasn't how it worked.
Basically friend rang and said they had covid, we'd seen her a few days before so I booked us in for a covid test thinking it was a good idea to be cautious

OP posts:
catgirl1976 · 26/12/2021 20:26

The no re test within 90 days is NO LONGER the current guidance

You need to read the up to date guidance which does not state this and do not ignore the positive PCR

catgirl1976 · 26/12/2021 20:27

It has changed very recently due to Omicron. From this thread it appears very few
People are aware or up to date on this