Can a negative test stop self isolation?

[notevenat20]

DD’s class was recently sent home for 14 days and told to self isolate (infected teacher). I can see this happening regularly for DC. If we got them tested and it was negative, would they then be free to leave the house? I feel I should know this so apologies if everyone else knows it already.

Delatron, I would too.

Yes, given the mean incubation period of 4.5 days, it makes sense to reduce the isolation period 7 days if it increases compliance!

In France it's been reduced to 7 days a while ago.

My friend is in a student house. Student 1(s1) tested positive day one, the rest of them isolated for 14 days. Two of them had negative tests in that time (colds). S2 tested positive on day 15, after they'd all had a day out. S3 tested positive on day 28 ish.

I can't promise everyone behaved as they should, but they've been dropping just after the isolation period. Either there's an asymptomatic bridge between each symptomatic student, or it's taking the full 14 days to show in the next person.

I’m not sure if I underwent the student example. If they isolated for 14 days, then went about their business and had a positive test on day 28 (after first student). Isn’t it more likely they picked it up in the subsequent two weeks they were out and about and mingling? Rather than a month incubation period!

Understand not underwent!

No delatron, they went down with it one after the other, every 14 ish days. So friend isolated 14 days because of flatmate. Had a day when she could get out and about then the next flatmate got it. Again they were just coming out when she got it herself.

There are 8 in the flat, 4 of them have tested positive so far. They've been isolating most of the term.

I can't be accurate about the dates, or the quality of the isolation! Only the experience my friend has had. Shut in almost constantly with the occasional day between cases to get some fresh air!

The mean isn't really helpful here.

You need to look at the graph of the mode, and put the cut off after most cases would have shown up.

There can be outliers (always is with biology!) but the typical range is 2-4 days, with the peak being 5-7 days.

I think reducing the isolation period to 7 days is too short (especially as people will always be tempted to skip the last day) but there might be better arguments for reducing to 10 days.

But whatever it it set at, a negative test during that period does not release you from self-isolation, because you could well be incubating it and are likely to be inflections in the 48hrs or so before symptoms show (or be asymptomatic but infectious)

But whatever it it set at, a negative test during that period does not release you from self-isolation, because you could well be incubating it and are likely to be inflections in the 48hrs or so before symptoms show (or be asymptomatic but infectious)

Is the period when you are likely to get false negatives the same as the period where you don’t have symptoms? I assume it can’t exactly be that otherwise all asymptomatic people would test negative.