Dd6 with fever, test or wait and see

[milkjetmum]

So DD aged 6 has a fever... At any other brine I would just keep home from school a few days and Calpol. No other symptoms apart from looking peaky and saying she felt a bit wobbly.

Do we go down the coronovirus testing road? Or wait and see if a 2nd symptom appears? Obviously if she gets poorlier I will call GP but seems a standard bug?

But do have in the back of my mind that dh was in hospital on Thursday/Friday last week for stomach pains (probably gallbladder) and so could have brought something home

*time not brine!

Test of course.

This message is everywhere.

You don’t need to wait for a second symptom (which might never appear anyway). The NHS guideline is clear - “Do not wait. Apply as soon as you have symptoms”.
The home test kit is very quick and easy and we got our results within 48 hrs.

I just don’t understand how this is even a question.

Why wouldn't you test?

What everyone else said.

Please test!

You need to know if the household will all need to self-isolate for 14 days.

FFS. Test. Surely you are isolating the household?! (Please)

We're in a pandemic. The "standard bug" right now is covid.

You need to know if the household will all need to self-isolate for 14 days.

The whole household needs to start isolating now.

We are already isolating as a family, and I thought guidance was for DD to isolate for 7 days and rest of us for 14? So she could go back to school next week in theory? Does testing change that is what I mean, or will I put a 6 year old through a nose swab without any benefit to us or anyone else?

The standard bug at the moment is not Covid.

It is very likely to be something else but at the moment it is important that everyone with symptoms is tested so we can be sure.

DS1 had a temperature on Thursday (only mild) he was also complaining of a sore mouth (I think he meant throat). We had a drive through test the same evening and negative results confirmed by 6am the following morning. All very straightforward and DH and I were tested at the same time for completeness.

DS1 recovered completely inside 48 hours and was never really anything less than 95% anyway. I really think the answer here is to always err on the side of caution, if you are wondering if you should do a test then you should do one, any sign at all of a symptom.

I hope your DD is better soon.

If negative you don't need to isolate as long as fever is gone for 48 hours DD can return to school. If negative the rest of the household can return to work etc unless showing symptoms.

Also a test is needed as if positive her school bubble will need to be shut down and any other contacts traced.

Yes it would impact on the school etc and what decisions that they make

If she’s been back to school then surely for the sake of her school you also need to get her tested - they need to know if there’s a positive case. In addition why make her miss a week of school (in fact 2 weeks as presumably you can’t take her if you still are isolating) when you could get the results of a drive through test tomorrow and have her back to school as soon as she’s feeling better??

Ah yes good point about the school, will try and book a drive through...

Have ordered a home test in the end as website was not very clear about which test centres can take children.

Just so you know for the future, if you call 119 there is a test helpline and they will guide you and book the test. The home tests are fine but do take longer to return a result. For that reason I would personally always try to get tested in a test centre if it's possible to do so.

Test centre gave us results in 11 hours from start to finish. You are realistically looking at a few days minimum from a home test.

OP I understand where you’re coming from in that the tests have been reported to be quite uncomfortable and intrusive that as a parent it’s often simpler to say ‘we’ll just isolate as a family for 14days’ (because presumably she will need someone to drop her and collect her from school, so the fact that their person showing symptoms only has to isolate for 7 days is neither here nor there.)

Honestly if she’s been in school yesterday or out and about over the weekend then really you do have a responsibility to have her tested so if it were positive you can let others know.

Honestly the tests aren’t as bad as they’ve been made out to be. Distract her with TV, have someone hold her hands if she’s lokely to flinch and just do it like it’s no big deal, remember at that age she will feed off the signals you give out, so if you are nervous so will she be.
Good luck, honestly it’s fine!

FFS are people actually thick? Everywhere you look there are clear instructions. It is actually impossible to live in the UK right now and not see this day in day out. Why are we still seeing stupid questions like this on a daily basis.

Our test centre suggested we just do both of DS's nostrils rather than his throat. He moaned a bit but I bribed him with a chocolate digestive and it was fine to be honest! DS is only just 4.

DH and I both did throat and nose.

If your child was in school with mine I would very much appreciate (and expect) that you had tested her before returning her to school

Rest assured everyone we will await test results before she goes back to school. And rest of us are all already working at home and doing home delivery shopping so no big change for us to isolate for 14 days.

Interesting point about if your child was at same school, there is this limbo period before I will get the results and then have to work backwards to tell her bubble. Of course also possible she brought a bug home from school and I will get a track and trace contact via another child in the coming days!

Will use chocolate bribery as suggested. I think in my defense the advice used to be fever + cough and so I was still thinking in those terms. I could have been worse and just Calpol'd and sent her in! 😉

Looks like there will be a lot of swab testing coming up this winter for all children...

I think in my defense the advice used to be fever + cough and so I was still thinking in those terms.

You have only ever needed one of the key symptoms to need to isolate and get tested. It used to be a fever OR new cough. It is now fever OR new cough OR loss of taste/smell. Did it really not cross your mind to google what the latest advice was if you weren’t sure?

Your “defence” is ridiculous. Calpol and send to school has never been an acceptable course of action during this Covid pandemic.

Chill @PurpleDaisies I have done all the things I should do thanks to good advice receivedhere.

Am glad I asked for advice when I was wavering this morning about correct next steps. But sheesh take it easy - the Calpol and send in was a joke hence the smiley!

It really isn’t funny.