What you need to know about ending a 10-day COVID quarantine

COVID is re-surging across Alaska and the US, and communities are grappling with the virus, quarantine, and recovery. KHNS’ Corinne Smith checked in with Elaine Hickey, a public health nurse based in Juneau, to discuss the health protocols for those recovering and getting out of a 10-day quarantine.

 

The following has been edited for length and clarity.

KHNS: Can you speak to our listeners who may be sick and in quarantine right now, what are some best practices for taking care of yourself?

Hickey: When people are having symptoms, one of the best things they can do is get rest, as much rest as they need. We ask people to stay really well hydrated. A lot of times, dehydration can set in pretty easily. We hear a lot of decrease in appetite. Try to eat, keeping your strength up is really helpful. Any medications or things people take to treat the symptoms that they’re having are okay to do as long as they’re not contraindicated for other health reasons or other underlying medical conditions. But you know, any medications or treatments would be fine to do to treat your symptoms. You know, we just ask people to try to really isolate themselves away from others in the home that maybe are not positive cases at this point. You want to stay separated, and really try to protect the others around you.

KHNS: Generally, for those people who are coming out of quarantine after 10 days, what are the best practices? What should people know, coming out of quarantine?

Hickey: Yeah, so coming out of quarantine is determined off of improvement of symptoms, we know from data and research from CDC guidance is that, you know, after 10 days of time, as long as symptoms have improved, they may not be completely gone, but as long as they are improved, and that there’s been no fever for 24 hours prior, you know, to that 10th day, that people can be released from isolation, they’re no longer considered infectious at that point, the viral load will be low enough, if not gone from within the body that they are not considered infectious to other people at that point in time. Symptoms may not be completely gone, someone might have a lingering cough, some of those body aches might linger. Fatigue is a big thing that we often see, that can linger for a little bit of time, along with you know, that sense of taste and smell, sometimes that can be a little while before it comes back or just improve slowly. Just because those symptoms are still present, doesn’t mean someone’s infectious, they are okay to be released after they hit that 10 days of time, they are okay on the 11th day to be released for isolation or longer infectious.

KHNS: So it’s okay for people to go back to work to rejoin their families and kind of resume activities after those 10 days.

Hickey: Yes, that is true. That is definitely true. You know, you’d still recommend, you know, wearing your mask in public places and tight quarters, whether you’re vaccinated or you’re not. When you’re in indoor locations, you can’t maintain that social distance, things like that, that you know, continue to wear those masks. And if not vaccinated, like really please consider getting vaccinated is the best protection we have.

KHNS: There’s been a lot of discussion that having COVID is kind of like its own booster shot. What can you say about people’s immunity from people who have recovered from COVID?

Hickey: The research is being put out by CDC and information regarding that. So the latest that we have been informed of is that they feel that someone who has both vaccine and has then developed COVID, and had been positive with the infection, has a very strong immune system for the future from being able to become reinfected again. And it’s stronger than someone, and has better protection than just someone who is, you know, just vaccinated. You have a little bit more extra protection from having been positive. People that are not vaccinated right now, what the guidance is, is that it’s felt that they have a three month time frame of natural immunity that they will not could not become reinfected again in that three month timeframe. But after that, you know, they certainly could be reinfected if re-exposed.

KHNS: Is that the same for children as well? 

Hickey: Yes, it is. 

KHNS: And after a case of COVID, people will not necessarily test negative, can you say more about that?

Hickey: That is true, once they have that positive COVID test, you do not receive another test for three months timeframe., they know that there’s, you know, the immunity for three months timeframe. someone can still have a positive test for weeks out after being tested for COVID and having a positive test. And it’s because the virus is still like kind of floating around in the body that it can be picked up on that test. But it’s just not in volumes high enough to be considered infectious. And especially if you’re asymptomatic, right, so if you’re not having any symptoms, and you get that test, it’s dead virus still shedding out of the body, and it’s not infectious at that point. 

There might be a time where if you did actually in that three month timeframe, become sick again, and feel like you had a flu or the cold like symptoms and became sick, you know, you would definitely consult with your, with the doctors call it clinic get evaluated, and you know, they would make a determination or whether you should actually get another test within that three month timeframe. If you are having symptoms again.

KHNS: Thank you so much, Elaine.

Hickey: Oh, you’re welcome. Thanks for reaching out.