4 ms·
The CDC recently admitted as much. People can test positive for covid weeks after initially testing positive. Which implies they still are shedding the virus.
by lettergram 5y ago
The CDC recently admitted as much. People can test positive for covid weeks after initially testing positive. Which implies they still are shedding the virus.
https://twitter.com/abc/status/1476189028982702080?s=21 https://twitter.com/abc/status/1476189028982702080?s=21
- nradov 5y agoA positive test indicates they are probably shedding pieces of viral genetic material. It doesn't necessarily mean they are shedding active virions. Sometimes there are just leftover fragments. In other rare cases immunocompromised individuals can experience prolonged active infections lasting for months.
- ddingus 5y agoWord of the day: virons = a complete virus particle that consists of an RNA or DNA core with a protein coat sometimes with external envelopes and that is the extracellular infectious form of a virus. For me, the intrigue centers on my personal realization that I pretty much never think about individual pieces. And that is what this word is all about. It's everything needed for Covid to happen, no less, no more.
- deleted 5y ago[deleted]
- throwoutway 5y agoThis happened to me. I tested positive a month after infection (was testing once or twice a week). I isolated anyways to be safe
- jazzyjackson 5y agoI thought I was meant to be testing every few days after my symptoms subsided until finally a nurse on the phone said “why do you need a test, you’re going to be have a positive result the next three months” Apparently PCR tests and antigen tests differ in this regard, but RIP to our insurance providers paying for millions of redundant tests
- lucb1e 5y agoNot a native speaker. Just to clarify: shedding the virus means being infectious? Or just their body is still doing cleanup but not necessarily that the virus is still intact and contagious/infectious? (The dictionary entry for shedding doesn't feel specific enough to draw conclusions from.)
- tragictrash 5y agoYes shedding like a dogs coat, but bits of virus. This is the main pathway of transmission. The pieces that are being shed are active and infectious.
- jdavis703 5y agoThe sibling comment answered this. But pro-tip, use an industry dictionary to define jargon. In this case a medical dictionary might help. For reference here’s what the Merriam Webster Medical Dictionary says: To discharge usually gradually from the body (e.g. exposed persons may shed virus from the oropharynx)
- lucb1e 5y agoThanks for the tip! I didn't know of that dictionary. In this case that's still ambiguous though as it doesn't indicate whether this discharged material is infectious or not, but perhaps then the word is simply ambiguous. (The sibling comment answered that, though: "It doesn't necessarily mean they are shedding active virions. Sometimes there are just leftover fragments")