Tips before buying a home COVID test for children
Health officials have said these are excellent tools for public health and infection testing.
There are a few things moms should know about rapid COVID-19 testing, both for themselves and their children. COVID-19 has changed the way everyone lives and looks at this world, and while life seems to be returning to some sense of normal, everyone is still urged to exercise caution and adhere to guidelines. public health to make sure they don’t. contracting and spreading the virus. Children under 12 do not yet have a vaccine, so many parents worry about their safety, especially if they finish school in person.
One of the solutions appears to be rapid COVID-19 tests that can be purchased and performed at home. These tests are supposed to work the same way as a pregnancy test, where you get the results almost instantly as to whether a person has COVID-19 or not. According to Huffington Post and The New York Times, there are some things parents should know before making provisions for the school year.
These tests can be picked up at any local pharmacy, they are inexpensive, easy to use, and results appear within minutes. Health officials have said these are great tools for public health and infection testing.
What health experts want parents to know is that these aren’t as sensitive as PCR tests at detecting the virus, but they can be useful in detecting if someone is incredibly contagious. Which means that if they have enough viral load in them that makes it a risk to public safety, these tests will detect it. Health officials are also telling parents that these tests should only be used if their child is asymptomatic. If your child is showing symptoms of the virus, they really should have a PCR test. This is because if your child is showing symptoms, there are interventions that can be done early enough to help them recover.
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Another reason is that rapid tests look for antigens, a protein that is found on the surface of the virus.
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PCR tests look for the genetic makeup or RNA of the virus.
PCR tests will detect even the tiniest traces of the virus, which a rapid test cannot. If your child is positive on a rapid test, then your child probably has a very high viral load and is incredibly contagious. There are currently three brands approved by the FDA, and they are Abbot’s BinaxNOW, Ellume, and Quidel QuickVue. These tend to sell out pretty quickly, so if you see one and want to have one on hand, mom better grab it when she sees it.
Sources: Huffington Post, The New York Times
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