COVID-19 cases are on the rise. So, for everyone’s safety, should we go back to using home COVID-19 test kits every time we have a runny nose, sore throat, or cough?
Covid testing hit the headlines last week when Team GB’s Olympic swimming star Adam Peaty revealed he had tested positive a day after winning silver in the 100m breaststroke.
Peaty said he had published his test result as “an advocate of full transparency.”
Team GB said it has been constantly monitoring infection rates in Paris and the UK as cases rose in the weeks leading up to the start of the Olympics. (Athletes are not regularly tested for Covid at the Games.)
According to NHS data, COVID-19 rates in the UK are rising. This could be due to the emergence of a new family of variants called FLiRT. The latest figures from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) show that in mid-July, hospitals recorded 3,557 new cases per week, an increase of 4.5 per cent on the previous week. There were also 152 deaths in one week, an increase of 20 per cent.
Covid symptoms include fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, and diarrhea (file image)
According to data from the National Health Service, COVID-19 rates in the UK are increasing, possibly due to the emergence of a new family of variants called FLiRT.
But that’s not the whole story, says Stephen Griffin, professor of cancer virology at the University of Leeds. “The official figures don’t give the full picture because we’re not testing and reporting as rigorously as we used to,” he says. “The only tests recorded now are those of hospitalised patients. And those figures are two weeks behind what’s happening.”
The latest figures from around four million users of the ZOE Health Study app indicate the UK had just under 100,000 symptomatic cases of Covid last week.
In response to rising numbers, many NHS sites are now requiring patients, visitors and staff to wear masks in clinical areas.
So who should get tested? The NHS recommends that people at higher risk of catching Covid-19 take a rapid lateral flow test as soon as they have symptoms, although there is no official requirement. This includes people aged 85 or over, care home residents and cancer patients.
But Dr Simon Clarke, associate professor of cellular microbiology at the University of Reading, says many more people should consider getting tested themselves.
“There are no clear cut-off points for vulnerability, so other groups who should seriously consider getting tested are people with type 2 diabetes or morbid obesity. But I don’t think people should be forced to get tested.”
If you have symptoms, common-sense precautions against spreading it apply, whether it’s Covid, a cold or flu, he says; this means that, as well as staying away from vulnerable people, “it’s good manners to take steps not to spread it – the old advice about flu (catch it, throw it, kill it) also firmly applies to Covid.”
Professor Griffin goes further, saying that if you have Covid-like symptoms (the most common currently being a runny nose, headache, cough, sore throat and muscle pain) “you can buy a Covid test kit and then use one”.
She warns: “A negative test doesn’t necessarily mean you don’t have Covid – it can miss the virus in up to 30 per cent of cases.” Instead, repeat the test as instructed. As for working or socialising, the current NHS advice is that if you test positive, “try to stay away from other people until you feel better.”
Adam Peaty tested positive a day after winning silver in the 100m breaststroke at the Paris Olympics
She added: “If you need to leave your home, avoid crowded or enclosed spaces (including public transportation or large social gatherings) or places where there is not much fresh air.”
The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) says: “If you test positive for Covid, you must inform your employer. Self-isolation is no longer a legal requirement. Instead, you must follow your employer’s policies.”
Professor Griffin is more cautious: “If you can, stay at home. Don’t rush back to work because doing too much too quickly can increase your risk of developing long COVID.”
What about masks? If you do get infected, the current NHS advice is to “wear a mask when it is difficult to keep your distance from other people”.
A new scientific analysis from Oxford University has found that any type of mask is better than none.
If you decide to give it a try, you can still buy them cheaply in pharmacies and on the Internet.
“Ideally, you want to use a test kit that is within its expiry date,” says Professor Griffin. “If you just have one that has been sitting in a drawer and is out of date, but the liquid in the[plastic tube that the swab is dipped into]hasn’t evaporated, then it should be sufficient as a last resort.”