At-Home Lateral Flow Testing: How to Test with Confidence

Coronavirus (COVID-19) symptoms can include:

• A high temperature or chills – a high temperature is when your chest or back feels hot to the touch.
• A new, persistent cough, which is defined as three or more coughing episodes in a 24-hour period or persistent coughing for more than an hour.
• Shortness of breath.
• Feeling tired or exhausted.
• A headache.
• An aching body.
• A sore throat.
• A loss of or change to the sense of taste or smell.
• A blocked or runny nose.
• Loss of appetite.
• Feeling sick or being sick.

The signs and symptoms resemble those of other diseases, such as the flu and colds.

If you have COVID-19 symptoms with either of the following, try to stay at home and limit interaction with others:

• Your body temperature is high.
• You don’t feel good enough to perform your regular duties or go to work.

Those who are more likely to contract COVID-19 and become very ill should take extra precautions to prevent close contact. When you start feeling better or your temperature is lower, you can resume your regular activities.

For the majority of people in Leicester and in England, free COVID-19 testing provided by the NHS has been discontinued. It’s no longer mandatory to do a PCR or rapid lateral flow test if you exhibit COVID-19 symptoms.

You have to pay for a COVID-19 test or buy a lateral flow home test kit if you still need to get tested but are not eligible for a free one offered through the NHS. Our pharmacy as well as other retailers sells COVID-19 test kits in-person or online.

For the majority of people, coronavirus (COVID-19) testing is no longer free. The NHS still offers some people free rapid lateral flow tests. You can access free NHS tests if you have a medical condition that makes you eligible for COVID-19 treatment.

Free NHS testing may also be available to you if:

• You are going into a hospital.
• You work in adult social care or healthcare.
  

If you are a close contact, have symptoms, or have tested positive, there are steps you may take to limit the transmission of the infection.

If you are not eligible for free testing and have a high temperature, signs of a respiratory illness like a coronavirus, or you don’t feel well enough to go to work or engage in daily activities, consider staying at home and avoid close contact with others. In case you have a high temperature, try to do this until it goes down or until you no longer feel sick.

If you receive a positive Covid-19 test result, ensure you stay at home and restrict your contact with other people for five days after the day you had the test, or from the time your symptoms began (whichever was earlier). The first day should be the day following the test.

If possible, a child or young people (18 years of age or under) with a positive Covid test result should try staying at home and limit contact with others for three days following the day they did the test or from the date their symptoms first appeared. Compared to adults, children as well as young people typically have shorter infectivity periods.

Although the effectiveness of a lateral flow test varies depending on the manufacturer and type, it typically works best in people who have high viral loads. This typically occurs within the first 5 to 7 days of the illness, either before symptoms appear or during the first few days of the sickness. Despite having the ability to transmit the virus, individuals with lower levels of the infection have a high likelihood of testing negative on lateral flow tests.

Visit Fusion Pharmacy today to purchase a lateral flow home test kit in Leicester.