Lateral flow testing?

[lake district canary 4,531]

I'm going to my first match in over 18 months today and took a lateral flow test yesterday to make sure I am clear. I'll take one tomorrow before I go and see people on Monday and so on through the week.  If you are going on a train/bus/someone else's car/in a crowd.....is it not only right to do this? I have come to the conclusion that I have to take the Lateral Flow Test regularly, as I need to be with other people socially, through work etc and don't want to be part of passing anything on. 

Do we all do this?  Should we?

[nutty nigel 7,509]

I do one every Wednesday Lakey. They tell me these tests aren't always reliable but I'm sure they're reliable enough to be better than no test. I can more comfortably be around others after a negative test. Especially old and/or vulnerable others.

[Mr Angry 1,545]

7 minutes ago, lake district canary said:

I'm going to my first match in over 18 months today and took a lateral flow test yesterday to make sure I am clear. I'll take one tomorrow before I go and see people on Monday and so on through the week.  If you are going on a train/bus/someone else's car/in a crowd.....is it not only right to do this? I have come to the conclusion that I have to take the Lateral Flow Test regularly, as I need to be with other people socially, through work etc and don't want to be part of passing anything on. 

Do we all do this?  Should we?

According to the staff at Boots when I picked up my pack of tests, they will probably show negative if you’ve had both jabs, even if you’ve got COVID.

[Monty13 2,229]

Lateral flows are notoriously unreliable in terms of false negative results.

At this stage of the pandemic it’s way more important for people to be fully vaccinated as SD and masks have all but disappeared.

 

[lake district canary 4,531]

5 minutes ago, Monty13 said:

Lateral flows are notoriously unreliable in terms of false negative results.

At this stage of the pandemic it’s way more important for people to be fully vaccinated as SD and masks have all but disappeared.

 

As Nutty said, it may not be perfect, but it is better than not taking the test regularly and gives a bit nore confidence to go about with other people.

Of course the main thing is to get vaccinated, but with every adult having had the opportunity to get vaccinated, if they haven't up to now, they are unlikely too (even if it is gross stupidity not to get vaccinated without a good medical reason). 

And why social distancing and mask wearing has lessened is even more stupid imo - and the complacency surrounding many people's attitude to covid is equally misplaced. 

[Monty13 2,229]

9 minutes ago, lake district canary said:

As Nutty said, it may not be perfect, but it is better than not taking the test regularly and gives a bit nore confidence to go about with other people.

Of course the main thing is to get vaccinated, but with every adult having had the opportunity to get vaccinated, if they haven't up to now, they are unlikely too (even if it is gross stupidity not to get vaccinated without a good medical reason). 

And why social distancing and mask wearing has lessened is even more stupid imo - and the complacency surrounding many people's attitude to covid is equally misplaced. 

It shouldn’t give confidence though. I first hand know a family that got devastated earlier in the year when their Dad and Grandma both died from getting Covid from someone who had taken a negative Lateral flow that morning who later turned out to be positive.

When it gives a positive result it’s almost certainly correct, when it doesn’t you are playing a lottery and it shouldn’t give any confidence that you won’t infect anyone.

Like I said far more important people are vaccinated to protect themselves, you can’t legislate for the stupidity and selfishness of others.

The complacency is driven by the situation. We are closing rapidly on two years of this, we have a vaccine, deaths from the vaccinated are rare and we need to and are steadily returning to some sort of normality. 

[Capt. Pants 4,195]

The only good thing about them is it is a test and if you do prove positive then that's a good thing for others, although not necessarily for you! However, as mentioned false negatives are a concern, as are people who just notify a negative result and don't even complete the test.

I have to do one every 72 hours for work, which is just about right given my routine and contact with other people. Once a week is fine if you don't come into contact with people that often I would have thought and is a good safety net rather than just relying on people to be vaccinated.

[Midlands Yellow 3,934]

1 hour ago, lake district canary said:

I'm going to my first match in over 18 months today and took a lateral flow test yesterday to make sure I am clear. I'll take one tomorrow before I go and see people on Monday and so on through the week.  If you are going on a train/bus/someone else's car/in a crowd.....is it not only right to do this? I have come to the conclusion that I have to take the Lateral Flow Test regularly, as I need to be with other people socially, through work etc and don't want to be part of passing anything on. 

Do we all do this?  Should we?

That good news your getting to a match, fingers crossed for a good result. 

[The Real Buh 3,423]

Lateral flow tests are more about psychological well-being than physical well-being.

if it makes people feel safer, go ahead. But try and live your life.

[fredherring 136]

Lateral flow tests are pointless. 

They make people who have been terrified feel better. 

My partner and her friends, all nurses in nnuh covid wards over the past two years, don't bother with them and laugh at how pathetic they are. 

Just get on with your life before the paranoia and rules creep stops it. 

[Ken Hairy 3,759]

1 hour ago, nutty nigel said:

I do one every Wednesday Lakey. They tell me these tests aren't always reliable but I'm sure they're reliable enough to be better than no test. I can more comfortably be around others after a negative test. Especially old and/or vulnerable others.

Not necessarily true, I know of 4 people who took a flow test because someone in their household tested positive but then took a PCR test and was actually positive. The fact that the flow tests are pretty much next to useless may mean people are walking about thinking they're negative when they're not. There a reason airlines don't use flow tests. 

[nutty nigel 7,509]

11 hours ago, Ken Hairy said:

Not necessarily true, I know of 4 people who took a flow test because someone in their household tested positive but then took a PCR test and was actually positive. The fact that the flow tests are pretty much next to useless may mean people are walking about thinking they're negative when they're not. There a reason airlines don't use flow tests. 

 

I take flow test every Wednesday to visit a care home. They check it log it take my temperature and ensure I gel my hands and wear face covering.

If this test is next to useless then both me and the care home are putting people's loved ones at risk.

That's a big worry. Are you sure you got it right?

[Naturalcynic 628]

6 hours ago, nutty nigel said:

 

I take flow test every Wednesday to visit a care home. They check it log it take my temperature and ensure I gel my hands and wear face covering.

If this test is next to useless then both me and the care home are putting people's loved ones at risk.

That's a big worry. Are you sure you got it right?

False positives with lateral flow tests are very rare, but false negatives are common.  However, they’re much more reliable when an individual is at their most infectious, so carried out regularly (twice a week) they’re a very good way of helping to protect those around you.

[Ken Hairy 3,759]

6 hours ago, nutty nigel said:

 

I take flow test every Wednesday to visit a care home. They check it log it take my temperature and ensure I gel my hands and wear face covering.

If this test is next to useless then both me and the care home are putting people's loved ones at risk.

That's a big worry. Are you sure you got it right?

100%, my boss was one, his kid tested positive so both he and his wife took a flow test which was negative for both, but still went and did a  proper pcr test which both came back positive. 

I'm not saying the home kits don't work, but I don't believe they're anywhere near as effective as we're being told. 

[Naturalcynic 628]

5 minutes ago, Ken Hairy said:

100%, my boss was one, his kid tested positive so both he and his wife took a flow test which was negative for both, but still went and did a  proper pcr test which both came back positive. 

I'm not saying the home kits don't work, but I don't believe they're anywhere near as effective as we're being told. 

I agree that false negatives are an issue with lateral flow tests, but see my previous post.  When an infected individual is at their most infectious, the tests are a lot more reliable.  It’s either side of that peak infectivity that the false negatives tend to increase.

[Ken Hairy 3,759]

17 minutes ago, Naturalcynic said:

I agree that false negatives are an issue with lateral flow tests, but see my previous post.  When an infected individual is at their most infectious, the tests are a lot more reliable.  It’s either side of that peak infectivity that the false negatives tend to increase.

Yeah, I'd agree that maybe for his own piece of mind Nutty ups it to two tests a week. 

My missus works in a care home, when the tests first came out they had to do one half hour before starting work, now they have to do one every day regardless of whether they're working that day or not and even then they have to them get a pcr one if the get a positive lateral. 

[Virtual reality 706]

Pointless and Useless things. I know two people who had the virus and were negative on these tests. In the U.S they have been recalled for that reason 

https://nursingnotes.co.uk/news/clinical/us-recalls-lateral-flow-tests-amid-significant-accuracy-concerns/#:~:text=The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA),been adequately established%2C presenting a risk to health”.

[lake district canary 4,531]

40 minutes ago, Naturalcynic said:

I agree that false negatives are an issue with lateral flow tests, but see my previous post.  When an infected individual is at their most infectious, the tests are a lot more reliable.  It’s either side of that peak infectivity that the false negatives tend to increase.

This ^^^

It's too simplistic to say they are useless or a waste of time.  They need to be taken regularly and carefully - it's also easy to not take them properly too, by not locating thr swab's correctly or deep enough into the mouth or nose. Kids need supervising when they take them too for that reason. It's not nice, but better to take the tests than not. 

 

[Virtual reality 706]

7 minutes ago, lake district canary said:

This ^^^

It's too simplistic to say they are useless or a waste of time.  They need to be taken regularly and carefully - it's also easy to not take them properly too, by not locating thr swab's correctly or deep enough into the mouth or nose. Kids need supervising when they take them too for that reason. It's not nice, but better to take the tests than not. 

 

So simplistic that in America they have told people to return or destroy them

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9676137/Americans-told-STOP-using-rapid-Covid-test-manufacturer-LIED-good-are.html

[Ken Hairy 3,759]

9 minutes ago, lake district canary said:

This ^^^

It's too simplistic to say they are useless or a waste of time.  They need to be taken regularly and carefully - it's also easy to not take them properly too, by not locating thr swab's correctly or deep enough into the mouth or nose. Kids need supervising when they take them too for that reason. It's not nice, but better to take the tests than not. 

 

Nobody is saying don't take them, but don't take one a week and rely that it's correct that's just as dangerous as people get a false sense of security 

[lake district canary 4,531]

40 minutes ago, Virtual reality said:

So simplistic that in America they have told people to return or destroy them

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9676137/Americans-told-STOP-using-rapid-Covid-test-manufacturer-LIED-good-are.html

Again, it's not a black and white situation. The US are obsessed that results of tests are not as accurate as the makers say - so it's more about regulations and the fact the people in the US have to pay for the tests and the possible litigation implications - than that the tests are useless - in other words the tests, taken regularly and carefully, do help to some extent - and if you read the Daily Fail article completely, it is clear that the situation is not as black as white as their headline suggests  (no surprise there.....) 

The advice is - take the tests carefully and regularly and if you have symptoms - take a PCR instead.  That is the best way to get the best out of what is available. It's not perfect, but better than not doing it.

Edited October 3, 2021 by lake district canary

[Naturalcynic 628]

1 minute ago, lake district canary said:

Again, it's not a black and white situation. The US are obsessed that results of tests are not as accurate as the makers say - so it's more about regulations than that the tests are useless - in other words the tests, taken regularly and carefully, do help to some extent - and if you read the Daily Fail article completely, it is clear that the situation is not as black as white as their headline suggests  (no surprise there.....) 

The advice is - take the tests carefully and regularly and if you have symptoms - take a PCR instead.  That is the best way to get the best out of what is available. It's not perfect, but better than not doing it.

Yes, and although a negative lateral flow test doesn’t mean you’re not carrying the virus, it does suggest that you’re probably not infectious at that moment or for a day or so either side.  Hence doing them at least twice a week is the responsible thing to do.

[nutty nigel 7,509]

6 hours ago, Naturalcynic said:

False positives with lateral flow tests are very rare, but false negatives are common.  However, they’re much more reliable when an individual is at their most infectious, so carried out regularly (twice a week) they’re a very good way of helping to protect those around you.

Thanks. Last week I visited a care home on Wednesday and day centre on Thursday so it's all about "those around you". 

Giving me false peace of mind just wouldn't work.

[Big Vince 318]

On 02/10/2021 at 11:01, lake district canary said:

I'm going to my first match in over 18 months today and took a lateral flow test yesterday to make sure I am clear. I'll take one tomorrow before I go and see people on Monday and so on through the week.  If you are going on a train/bus/someone else's car/in a crowd.....is it not only right to do this? I have come to the conclusion that I have to take the Lateral Flow Test regularly, as I need to be with other people socially, through work etc and don't want to be part of passing anything on. 

Do we all do this?  Should we?

Why are you such a do-gooder? People are going to have to live with this thing. End of.

Norwich City are never going to do anything with this complete absence of any devil or nasty streak.

[lake district canary 4,531]

2 hours ago, Big Vince said:

Why are you such a do-gooder? People are going to have to live with this thing. End of.

It's nothing to do with being a do-gooder.  It was just a question and really, all I wanted to know is whether other people are doing this or not. 

And it's all very well saying people have to live with it, but the more careful we are, the less we are likely to pass it on to others and potentially causing real harm. Common sense, wouldn't you say?

[Greavsy 2,412]

Always had you as an optimist than a do gooder Lakey! and there is nowt wrong with either! 

[Herman 9,713]

Can someone tell me how long it takes to get results? Did one yesterday morning and have heard nothing back. Cheers for any help.

[Midlands Yellow 3,934]

41 minutes ago, Herman said:

Can someone tell me how long it takes to get results? Did one yesterday morning and have heard nothing back. Cheers for any help.

I had one back within 24hrs at work. 

[Herman 9,713]

Cheers mate. It looks like I have done the wrong one when a rapid home test would have sufficed. Nevermind.

 

Update, yes I did a PCR rather than a lateral flow. I should pay more attention. (Both negative👍)

Edited October 4, 2021 by Herman

[Naturalcynic 628]

2 hours ago, Herman said:

Cheers mate. It looks like I have done the wrong one when a rapid home test would have sufficed. Nevermind.

 

Update, yes I did a PCR rather than a lateral flow. I should pay more attention. (Both negative👍)

Lateral flow tests are for routine asymptomatic testing and give an almost instant result.  PCR tests are for those with symptoms or those who’ve had close contact with a known positive case, and the result is usually back within 24 hours.