Are we supposed to get a covid test for just a cold ?

[user19097527484949]

It seems on MN that's what people do. But in real life, I know lots of people out and about with colds. Going into work etc. I mean just the minor, usual head cold.

What's everyone else doing if they get a normal cold at the moment ? Or if their child gets a normal cold? Not the main three symptoms. My toddler is at home with me and not at nursery. Just want to do the right thing when / if we get a cold.

Also, when will a cold just be a cold again ?

No, but you can grab a lateral flow test easily if it makes you feel better.

A cold work no covid symptoms, no. A cold with a temperature, cough or change or loss of taste/smell, yes. The same as it's always been...

Not if it's just a cold with no covid symptoms.

I test for a cold mainly because the Zoe app found that children with covid usually show cold symptoms rather than the main three

Yes. Get a test. Covid has a million symptoms including ones similar to a cold. Trust me. Get a test.

I don't currently have a cold or anything. No one I know in real life would test for a cold.

I test if it’s a cold with a cough; I’d rather just test than have my DC sent home from nursery and send the nursery into a panic. It’s only been once though.

How do you know it's a cold? How do you know it's not covid?

I test for anything that could be construed as potentially Covid. It's socially responsible and barely inconvenient.

I think now that lateral flow tests can be accessed for free from the pharmacy for everyone or ordered online then if I had a head cold or my child did and had tests in the house it would make sense to do one rather than risk spreading the virus to anyone that could be vulnerable. Plus most colds do come with a temperature, or a cough or a change in taste or smell so that would be a reason test.

We have children in school with colds at the moment and children with hayfever. There's no need to test with cold symptoms unless you're still hysterical about Covid. 😉

No PCR test for a cold with no main symptoms here: it's not in the list of reasons you're allowed to get.a PCR test at the moment. We can all get lateral flow tests now,.

It feels unsanitary now how so many people used to ignore colds/mild flu and soldier on to school and the office powered by lemsip and an unfounded belief they're somehow not contagious. Even when colds are just colds again I hope people are a little more cautious and spread them less.

I've had three colds in the last two months. Two necessitated a test because they came with a cough, one was just a runny nose, congestion and a sore throat, so didn't.

When I tested positive (PCR) for Covid a couple of months ago, my symptoms were:

Runny nose
Sneezing
Blocked sinuses
Feeling knackered
Cough (because of the congestion / sinuses)
Blocked ears

Loss of smell and tasted didn't come until several days after the positive test.

Basically I felt like a had a cold. So yes, I'd do a Covid test!

We're doing lateral flow tests every three days anyway. So I'm reasonably sure neither I nor ds has covid. Will just carry on testing if I get cold symptoms.

@MargaretThatcherMilkSnatcher

When I tested positive (PCR) for Covid a couple of months ago, my symptoms were:

Runny nose
Sneezing
Blocked sinuses
Feeling knackered
Cough (because of the congestion / sinuses)
Blocked ears

Loss of smell and tasted didn't come until several days after the positive test.

Basically I felt like a had a cold. So yes, I'd do a Covid test!

Ahh, but you had a cough, so you were supposed to take a test anyway. If you hadn't had a cough, you'd have had to lie on the form to get a test.

Any one of the three symptoms => test
You don't have to wait for all three.

@Mintjulia

We're doing lateral flow tests every three days anyway. So I'm reasonably sure neither I nor ds has covid. Will just carry on testing if I get cold symptoms.

If you get one of the main three symptoms they tell you to watch for, you need a PCR test regardless.

@Whatalottachocca

We have children in school with colds at the moment and children with hayfever. There's no need to test with cold symptoms unless you're still hysterical about Covid. 😉

Hahaha

@Whatalottachocca

We have children in school with colds at the moment and children with hayfever. There's no need to test with cold symptoms unless you're still hysterical about Covid. 😉

It's been well documented that children with covid present as having a cold.

It's hardly hysterical to do a LFT test just to check.

I have hay fever, fully vaccinated and LFT twice weekly as part of my job so feel confident it'll pick up if I get covid but my hay fever masks the symptoms. I'm not hysterical. I've worked in a classroom everyday since lockdown 1.
We've had 12 children with COVID in that 10 time. 10 had symptoms of a cold.

We think the index case was a child who had a "cold" and who's cough mum said isn't covid (like she can tell by looking at him) because 5 days after his "cold" we had an outbreak of 11 more children and 5 staff. 1 of the staff contacts died.

I will add he had cold symptoms for 4 days and then got a cough which mum said he always got with a cold.

Just do the lateral flow twice a week no matter what and never tell anyone on mumsnet you have a cold or you will be told you are killing people

I've had covid and had none of the symptoms. I had dreadful aches dizziness and a pounding headache. No temp and only a cough a week later so always wonder about only testing if you have
the main symptoms..

We had a friend who insisted they just had a cold. Eventually they agreed to have a test and it was covid.

@user19097527484949

It seems on MN that's what people do. But in real life, I know lots of people out and about with colds. Going into work etc. I mean just the minor, usual head cold.

What's everyone else doing if they get a normal cold at the moment ? Or if their child gets a normal cold? Not the main three symptoms. My toddler is at home with me and not at nursery. Just want to do the right thing when / if we get a cold.

Also, when will a cold just be a cold again ?

My son had a mildish but persistent cough for one morning just before Easter . I would have ignored it as it was so mild and DS gets haufever but we had someone due in the house over the following few days to invigilate some GCSE assessments that we had arranged for DS to take at home . We did an LFT test which was negative

Given we had a visitor due, I overrode my husband's objection and also got a PCR arranged for the same day. I felt a bit of an idiot when DSs cough was completely gone by the evening and felt bad for DS having his first assessment postponed while we waited for the result . I felt less bad when we for the results which were positive

When my ds tested positive on LFT and then PCR he literally had a mild runny nose and bit of a nasal voice.
None of the "main symptoms."