"Swab both your throat and your nose to improve the sensitivity or the accuracy of the test," said Mithani. If not, then you can stretch it out every one to two, or one to three days, just to ration tests a little bit." "For at least for every single day that you're symptomatic, I would test every day if you have access to that number of rapid tests. "Testing every 24 hours while you're symptomatic," said Mithani. It's not entirely clear yet why the rapid tests don't seem to pick up Omicron as effectively as they picked up earlier variants.īarrett said it is too early to know whether it is the variant itself that is more difficult to pick up, or whether there is less viral load to detect because people getting sick have some level of immunity from vaccination or previous infection.īut there are ways to make the test more effective. I've heard rapid tests don't work on Omicron, so what's the use? She said it's also important to know so that you can let anyone you were in close contact with know that they've been exposed to the virus. "In the case of a situation where somebody might be unfortunate enough to develop long COVID, it's important to have that documentation of having had COVID," said Mithani. Rapid testing is also recommended if you are young or otherwise healthy, for a few reasons.Ī rapid home test for COVID-19 shows a negative result. Still, he said a positive rapid test "would put you in line to get these new antiviral medications," including Remdesivir or Paxlovid. He recommends anyone who is elderly, immunocompromised, or who has multiple medical conditions to get a rapid antigen test at the very least, though a PCR would be best. Kashif Pirzada, an emergency physician in Toronto. "If you're a person at high risk, getting a test would make you eligible for antiviral treatment," said Dr. "Īnd knowing that is important for several reasons. "The purpose of a rapid test at this point is to tell you, if you do have a positive, that it's highly likely that you have Omicron, or COVID. "The purpose of a rapid test is not to tell you you're not infected," said Barrett. If you have manageable symptoms, like a mild cold, should you still do a COVID-19 test? Still, the bottom line is that testing is the only way to know for sure whether you have COVID-19. What doctors say they are seeing more of with Omicron is gastrointestinal symptoms, especially diarrhea, but also vomiting and abdominal pain. "That loss of taste and smell, which was kind of a warning symptom of, like, this is very likely COVID … that has evolved out of the virus, where it's less prominent now," said Barrett. Lisa Barrett, an infectious disease doctor and researcher at Dalhousie University in Halifax.Īnd a once telltale sign has all but disappeared. "Many people who have COVID infection feel almost nothing or very mild symptoms - especially if they're young and healthy - versus some people as they start to get into their 40s, 50s and upwards seem to be much more symptomatic," said Dr. Temperature equal to or more than 38 C.Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing.Right now, some of the most commonly experienced symptoms of COVID-19 include: And PHAC warns that symptoms vary from one person to another, and that age can be a factor. The current list of possible COVID-19 symptoms in Canada is long – 14 in all. "There's no specific symptom or lack of symptom that can say for sure it is COVID or not. Shazma Mithani, an emergency physician in Edmonton. It's impossible to know for sure whether you have COVID-19 without a test, said Dr. Tam says she encourages people to continue wearing masks to keep the pandemic under control. We'll answer some of those questions here.ĭuration 1:46 Canada's Chief Public Health Officer Theresa Tam says that whenever public health measures are relaxed, a resurgence of COVID-19 cases can be expected. Two of the doctors who spoke to CBC News for this story recently tested positive.īut with limited access to PCR tests across Canada, some who are getting sick are wondering if they have COVID or a cold or the flu - and what they should do if they have COVID-like symptoms but don't actually feel so unwell. It seems everyone either knows someone who is sick or they are sick themselves.
"As of March 31, daily average case counts have increased by 28 per cent nationally," Canada's Chief Public Health Officer Theresa Tam said during a briefing last week. We are listening: Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) says a resurgence of COVID-19 appears to be underway, fuelled by the highly transmissible Omicron variant. At the same time, most COVID restrictions have been lifted across the country, more adults are heading back to workplaces, and kids, for the most part, no longer have to wear masks in schools. Send us all of your questions about COVID-19.
This story idea came from audience members, like you, who got in touch with us.
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