What do you do if lft is still positive after day 10?

[ScarlettDarling]

Dh was delighted at the news this morning that isolation could end after 7 days if you had two negative lft results. Today was day 7 for him and he’s hardly had any symptoms at all. He did his lft and was gutted that it showed the faintest of lines so has had to stay in isolation.
What happens if you still test positive after day 10? Are you free to go out or do you keep isolating?

And wasn’t the previous guidance not to use lfts for 3 months after a confirmed pcr positive?

I can’t see anything that says that’s changed

So does that mean you can't get Covid again within 90 days? Or you just can't reliably test for it?

@PurpleDaisies

And wasn’t the previous guidance not to use lfts for 3 months after a confirmed pcr positive?

I can’t see anything that says that’s changed

I thought the guidance was not to have a PCR for 3 months, not LFTs?

I was told by both test and trace and our school nurse (I'm a teacher, not a child!) not to do the routine LFTs or PCRs for 90 days after testing positive. That was back in Sept so pre omicron but they certainly used to think the risk of remaining positive also applied to LFTs.

@Littlewhiteballs

So does that mean you can't get Covid again within 90 days? Or you just can't reliably test for it?

If you get symptoms you need a pcr

I thought the guidance was not to have a PCR for 3 months, not LFTs?

It’s both

Within 90 days it's possible to pick up old virus on a pcr so difficult to tell if a positive result is a true reinfection or not.

littlewhiteballs - the latter. Although it was also very, very unlikely that you'd get it again in that window. But omicron might have changed that.

@PurpleDaisies

And wasn’t the previous guidance not to use lfts for 3 months after a confirmed pcr positive?

I can’t see anything that says that’s changed

Well it has changed because they’re telling you to check with a lft on day 6 and 7 after a positive pcr.

This is very worrying. I'm currently isolating but plan to travel abroad in March. It's starting to look like I won't be able to do that as i may not be able to get a negative LFT or PCR

Well it has changed because they’re telling you to check with a lft on day 6 and 7 after a positive pcr.

Only in that specific circumstance if you want to end isolation early.

@PurpleDaisies There was no need for him to test. It was curiosity in response to the change in guidelines!

No idea why that was all in bold. Sorry!

@ScarlettDarling

Dh was delighted at the news this morning that isolation could end after 7 days if you had two negative lft results. Today was day 7 for him and he’s hardly had any symptoms at all. He did his lft and was gutted that it showed the faintest of lines so has had to stay in isolation. What happens if you still test positive after day 10? Are you free to go out or do you keep isolating?

Yes he can go out

@OnGoldenPond

This is very worrying. I'm currently isolating but plan to travel abroad in March. It's starting to look like I won't be able to do that as i may not be able to get a negative LFT or PCR

You can do a lamp test instead

@OnGoldenPond

This is very worrying. I'm currently isolating but plan to travel abroad in March. It's starting to look like I won't be able to do that as i may not be able to get a negative LFT or PCR

I’m sure that if you have proof of recent infection (your positive pcr test?) then that can be used in place of negative test.

Virus is only live and infectious for a few days but DNA remains in your system for weeks, hence the issue with testing positive when you're no longer infectious. There's an issue about when the 10 days start: if you're measuring from the onset of symptoms, this is quite a subjective judgment. If you're measuring from the first positive PCR, the 10 days may be excessive, but its difficult to know.

Anyway, it seems you're free to go out 10 days from onset of symptoms or first positive PCR, or after 7 days with a positive LTF now.

I thought it was 10 days as long as you’d had no symptoms for three days.

😂
There are so many variations of peoples made up rules and interpretations

@Lokdok point out exactly where it says the things you're spouting here. You're making things up and talking utter nonsense.

@Yuledo

I thought it was 10 days as long as you’d had no symptoms for three days.

Where has that come from?

It’s ten days unless you’ve got continuing symptoms apart from a cough or loss of taste/smell.

www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/self-isolation-and-treatment/how-long-to-self-isolate/

@Mandyjack what's a lamp test, not heard of that? Don't know if they would offer it in my Mum's tiny town in Spain, they only had lateral flows when I was there last.

Nobody knows exactly for how long you are contagious when you have Covid, the cutoff point is arbitrary and based on what happens to most people but not all. Some countries have a 14 day isolation, some 10, others let you out only with a negative test or two, etc.

Realistically speaking the UK guidance is geared more towards getting people back into work ASAP and making money, and less towards minimising risks to public health. LFTs are less sensitive than PCRs so if you still test positive on them after 10 days it's possible you are still contagious, but it's not sure either way and you have no legal obligation to continue isolating.