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You dont want to miss a faint line and you dont want to ostrich and pretend its not there, he says. To clear up any uncertainty Dr Nathan Hudson-Peacock, an A&E doctor from London took to Instagram to issue some guidance to help people understand what a faint line can mean. A major review found that lateral flow tests used in England were almost always correct when they produced a positive result (99 per cent). They shouldn't bother. Doctor issues warning over 'faint' result lines Reading the test after the recommended time frame could lead to a false positive. But when your phone timer goes off, you check it and see two lines, and the positive line is very faint much less visible than when you first tested. She has been with SFGATE for more than 10 years. The test strip has antibodies specific to the Covid-19 virus painted on it in a thin line. Dr Hudson-Peacock explained in his post: "Essentially, if *any* line appears before the end of the interpretation window this is a *positive* test and you must isolate and book a PCR. If your rapid test reads positive, you need to self-isolate and book a PCR test. Ah, the start of a new school year. A doctor has explained why seeing a faint second 'positive' line on a lateral flow test doesn't always mean you have the virus. Last month the Omicron variant overtook Delta and became the most dominant strain in both London and England, causing many of us to scramble for Covid tests ahead of the festive season. Stay in the loop with our daily NEWS email, I have read and understood Netmums' Privacy Notice and Terms & Conditions. A faint, slow-to-appear line could still represent high levels of virus, she said. "Usually you want a couple negative tests," says Malani. Exactly how contagious am I? Do you have a story we should be covering? This is where you drop your sample. Under NHS guidance, it states that close contacts of those with Covid should do daily lateral flows for seven days if both asymptomatic and fully vaccinated, or asymptomatic and aged 18 and six months or under. See an archive of our FAQs here. The next day carried out a lateral flow test that did not come up positive. Ultimately, Dr. Schaffner says, the most conservative interpretations is, if you get a lineeven if its faintyoure likely to be positive., 9 Wellness Gift Ideas from Oprahs Favorite Things. Some people however are still confused because if a line appears before or after the usual 30-minute waiting time, what does this mean? But they were less accurate when it came to giving a negative result. Epidemiologist Billy Quilty, who shared image, said this is why we should 'do LFTs*just*before meeting up'. Express. (You can order free tests through the government at COVIDtests.gov, or find them at pharmacies and online retailers. So what would a faintly positive test result mean outside the 30-minute mark, if not Covid?