Why are my covid pcr results taking so long. What Takes So Long? A Behind-The-Scenes Look At The Steps Involved In COVID-19 Testing

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Valerie DeBenedette has over 30 years' experience writing about health and medicine. She is the former managing editor of Drug Topics magazine. But what now? It depends on several factors, experts say, and the most important part is which test you use. Antigen tests, often called rapid tests, can rapidly look for the viral proteins called antigens and can be conducted at home.

Whether you use a PCR test or a rapid test, the results are either positive or negative. They do not measure how much virus you may have in your body or how infectious you may be.

These tests, however, have different sensitivities. Sensitivity indicates how likely a test is to detect a condition when it is actually present in a patient.

A test with high sensitivity is less likely to produce a false negative. PCR tests are more sensitive, and are able to detect the presence of the virus earlier. For whatever reason, there is still viral genetic material hanging out in their nose.

Rapid tests are less sensitive, but a person will probably still test positive for six or seven days after they are no longer having symptoms, Gronvall said. If you have gotten a positive result on a test, there is no point in testing any further.

The only time to retest is if you test negative after you have been exposed to someone with the virus or if you have symptoms. It can take time for the virus to build up to levels that are detectable. With a rapid test, you may test positive for six or seven days after your symptoms have cleared. The information in this article is current as of the date listed, which means newer information may be available when you read this.

Sign up for our Health Tip of the Day newsletter, and receive daily tips that will help you live your healthiest life. Screening tests: a review with examples. Inhal Toxicol. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. What we know about quarantine and isolation. When you visit this site, it may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. Cookies collect information about your preferences and your device and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests.

You can find out more and change our default settings with Cookie Settings. By Valerie DeBenedette. Valerie DeBenedette. Learn about our editorial process. Fact checked Verywell Health content is rigorously reviewed by a team of qualified and experienced fact checkers.

Fact checkers review articles for factual accuracy, relevance, and timeliness. We rely on the most current and reputable sources, which are cited in the text and listed at the bottom of each article. Content is fact checked after it has been edited and before publication.

Learn more. Nick Blackmer. Fact checked by Nick Blackmer. Share Tweet Email Print. The persistence of a positive result depends on which test was used, since the polymerase chain reaction PCR test is more sensitive than the rapid antigen tests that can be administered at home.

What Is Sensitivity? Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Sign Up. What are your concerns? Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles.

Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. Related Articles. Can Asymptomatic People Spread Omicron?

   

 

Why are my covid pcr results taking so long. COVID-19 testing

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