Isolating query

[shellshock77]

Can anyone help with this isolating query please?

If someone at home has a positive test, all the family end their isolation after 10 days and can go out again etc. Does this mean that if Covid was passed on to another household member, but they were asymptomatic, they could actually still be contagious after the ten days? Or does the ten days account for that possibility?

Thanks

The 10 days accounts for that possibility. Thinking is

Person A was contagious for 2 days before they started symptoms. They probably got tested on day they started symptoms and that's when the others start isolating. Typical incubation period is 5 days, 98% by 10 days. most people stop being contagious by 7 days after first symptoms. So if the (not original person) isolate for 10 days after start of symptoms, that's for 12 days after first exposure. If they haven't got it by then they probably won't get it at all. Even if the secondary cases got covid asymptomatically, they should no longer be contagious after 10 days isolation.

Make some sense?
The windows can't be worked out perfectly, it's a probability-risk calculation.

Big study just came out reckons that only about 20% of exposed people in same household get covid, by the way. 80% will not get it even though exposed in same household.

Thank you, really appreciate the full answer.

I was alerted by the App to self isolate last week, then got symptoms and tested positive, so did DH. Kids have been fine but it just had me wondering!