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The period during which people with Covid-19 must isolate themselves is shrinking from 14 days to 10.
Under the new guidelines, patients who test positive for the virus are advised to self-isolate for “a minimum of 10 days” from the onset of symptoms, or 10 days from the test date if they are asymptomatic. They should also go five days without fever.
When a person with Covid-19 symptoms tests negative, they are advised to isolate themselves for up to 48 hours after their symptoms resolve.
The new guidelines for children under the age of 13 provide for tests based on nasal swabs, rather than the nasal / throat swabs currently in effect.
The new advice is contained in the revised guidelines for GPs from the HSE and the Center for Health Protection Surveillance.
The change from 14 days to 10 does not apply to contacts of confirmed cases that have been evaluated, nor to people arriving from countries other than those on the Government’s green list. These groups must still restrict their movements for 14 days.
Acting Medical Director Dr. Ronan Glynn said the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) had decided to reduce the isolation period from 14 to 10 days for confirmed cases from the onset of symptoms, according to the advice. received from the expert advisory group after a review of the evidence.
“In addition, it has been agreed that nasal swabs are an acceptable alternative to nasopharyngeal swabs for use in children in the community. Hopefully this will make testing an easier process for children in the future.
“Covid-19 is an evolving pandemic and NPHET is committed to adapting advice and guidelines based on emerging evidence,” he said.
NPHET reported another 208 confirmed cases Monday night, including 108 in Dublin. There have been a total of 31,192 confirmed cases in the Republic. There were no new deaths, leaving the number of deaths from Covid-19 at 1,784.
Under 45 years
Of the new cases, 108 are in Dublin, 18 in Louth, 12 in Donegal, 10 in Meath, nine in Kildare, eight in Waterford, seven in Cork, six in Limerick and Wexford. The remaining 24 cases are in Carlow, Cavan, Clare, Galway, Kilkenny, Laois, Longford, Mayo, Roscommon, Tipperary, Westmeath, and Wicklow.
About 62 percent of cases are in people under 45 years of age and 33 percent are associated with outbreaks or are close contacts of a confirmed case. No figure was provided on the number of cases related to community transmission.
The recommended change in testing for children was welcomed by Kildare GP Dr. Brendan O’Shea. He said nasal swabs are easier and faster than nasopharyngeal swabs, which are possibly invasive if done correctly. “Hopefully, it will make the tests faster and easier,” he told RTÉ Radio.
“No test is perfect. There are degrees of precision, degrees of acceptability, degrees of cost, and degrees of reliability, ”he said.
“From a very practical point of view, nasal swabs for children should be easier than nasopharyngeal swabs.” He said parents and teachers are “haunted by this problem” and anything that makes it easier is welcome. “We would appreciate this as a recommendation,” he added.
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