DS sent home feeling warm to the touch...have testing kits from work

[CafeMochaVodkaValiumLate]

Can I use one of them? Does it need to be registered if so?

LFTs aren't meant for using on symptomatic people. If he has a temp you need to get a PCR (more accurate) test.
However, if it were me, I'd probably be tempted to do an LFT as well, out of curiosity. If it's positive you can be pretty sure he's positive but it's that you can't definitely rule out him being positive if an LFT is negative, if that makes sense.

@Hazelmazel thanks for the reply. What's LFT?

LFT - lateral flow test. They type used for home testing with a 30 min result that you read at home.
As above, they are not designed to be used if symptomatic. You need a PCR test whatever. If the home test is negative, you need to check the symptoms against a more sensitive PCR test, and if its positive, a home test needs confirming with a PCR test.
I'd just book a test.

Oh okay, they accepted the test we've just used and said he can go back if feels fine tomorrow. The test was ov neg.

If you care about the risk of infecting others, even a little bit, you will get him a pcr test regardless of what they'll accept.

He needs a pcr test too please don't send him back Until he's had one

Oh dear lord.

What they said, lft home tests are not designed for use if you have symptoms. He needs a pcr test.

If pcr comes back negative, fantastic, send him to school. Please don't send him back to school if he's had symptoms and only a negative lft.

They checked which test it was and it's the same as the teachers are using twice a week. We are going to the drive thru testing centre later to be safe.

Yes, the teachers are using LFT, but they dont have a temperature.
Please isolate until you get the results of the drive through test back later in the week.

@YellowDaffidols why are school not telling me to do this?

Because school are wrong.
You child has a covid symptom. They need a PCR test, not a rapid LFT.

The guidance for teachers is only to use LFT tests if they don’t have symptoms. If they have a symptom eg a temperature they need to get a PCR test.

If he has a temperature then a proper test is needed, not the ones you have at home. They aren't very accurate and don't always pick up covid.

The lateral flow tests that teachers use miss a lot of cases but are used to pick up cases that would otherwise be missed due to there being no symptoms. If he has symptoms one of the PCR tests that can only be done at a test centre must be used, as these are far more sensitive and reliable where as the lateral flow tests that are done at home give a lot of false negatives.

The LFD tests can detect viral load in asymptomatic patients but if you are symptomatic the viral load may be lower (thus not detected on LFD) because the virus has developed. A PCR is important for symptomatic people.

agree with everyone else. If no symptoms then an LFT should be ok (although there is def a risk of a false negative) if symptomatic you should def get a PCR. If that is negative then you should be in the clear, that said I do know of someone already symptomatic whose PCR was negative yet was positive the following day so still not foolproof

Makes sense all - thanks. Should get results today.

The science behind this really doesn't make sense. I don't think there is much difference and would have used a lot and accepted that result. How many are negative on left then positive on PCR? I've never seen the figure for this

I'm totally wrong so ignore the above. It seems like lft only useful for finding the super spreaders with no symptoms but such high vital loads that lft catches it. Lft missed lots of positive in the Liverpool uni cohort

LFT's are