October 19, 2022
More than one-in-four students still tested positive for COVID-19 after a week in isolation, international research has found.
The study, conducted in the United States, found 67 (27 per cent) of 248 students tested were positive after their official isolation period ended.
Those most likely to return a positive RAT test were people who still had symptoms, and those who had the Omicron variant BA.2.
The results of the peer-reviewed case study have been published in JAMA Network Open, a monthly open access medical journal by the American Medical Association.
The scientists say the case study results suggest five-day isolation as recommended by the US Centres for Disease Control – or no isolation at all, as recommended in Australia – may not be sufficient to prevent the ongoing spread of COVID-19.
They suggested people with COVID-19 should wait until they return a negative RAT test before mingling with others.
