Posted on 03/26/2020 4:54:41 AM PDT by NonValueAdded
Why not offer flu tests as part of screening? Cheap, readily available, eliminates doubt.
Something hit me the other day like a ton of bricks. Headache, chills, shakes, deep muscle pain, then fever. No cough, no shortness of breath, no chest pain. I met some but not all of the Covid 19 criteria. It struck at work so my office mates were as freaked as was I. It took a long time to get my doc on the phone, a full day, and she said I didn't qualify for the test.
Great, I still don't know. I did find that others had the same illness experience. I'm trying the Vitamin D Hammer and it has brought some relief.
But it dawned on me today that I'd really like a flu test to eliminate the uncertainty. Try and get one, though, with doctors offices not open. It would give me and my coworkers some peace of mind.
By the way, I also see that the symptom list keeps changing. So ruling me out over the phone doesn't mean I don't have it, just that my case isn't critical FOR NOW. So I'm in self-quarantine until I'm asymptomatic or a second wave of Kung flu hits me as it seems to do.
Just a thought.
Read the guy from New Orleans last night. He said, “...this disease has told all other illnesses to ‘Get out of town!’.”
Yeah I know 2 people who’ve been sick & weren’t tested for anything. I suppose the reason they stopped testing for other types of flu is because the labs already have a backlog and some people are waiting up to 10 days to find out results when tested for COVID-19. Testing every sick person who is ill isn’t feasible right now.
I agree. I wish there was a cheap home flu test. They have them but > $300.
It would be great to have home tests for flu, CV19, and common cold viruses.
You wouldn’t have to go into a doctors office and risk exposing anyone or being exposed.
And it would be great to test for all of these at drive though testing centers.
Cheap and early diagnoses could help stop people from spreading any of them.
I recall reading yesterday about a man who tested positive for both COVID-19 and the flu. Now I’m trying to find the article again, but if true, then it’s possible to have both simultaneously.
Protocol is to rule out influenza and strep then test for covid
Just curious. When did your symptoms start how long have you been sick and how are you feeling now. If possible,give dates.
One can have both tho. Influenza doesn’t have to be shy around coronovirus. They could both be a deadly couple together.
I have been wondering myself if in the end, all the social distancing will ultimately bring down the number of flu deaths and possibly we end up with less overall deaths this season.
I had the symptoms of the flu and was totally exhausted with aches and pains and chills 4 Saturday Sunday Monday and Tuesday yesterday the symptoms were gone and I talked to my doctor who recommended self isolating for a week rather than go get a covid test.
It is possible to have a mild case of covid and then it goes away not much point and getting a covid. Test now... I had my appointment with my doctor Wednesday on the phone that was helpful and I’m hoping to be able to tellework work from home.
I am grateful that whatever it was is over and did not get into the fever coughing or worse my remedy was to lay flat out and rest with fluids and aspirin.
Boy did I pray a lot during all that this whole covid. Thing has really intensified my prayer life which is good
The New Orleans guy said of all the COVID patients he had only two tests positive for flu. One would think it would be more since they are spread the same but this virus sees to be quite a “bully”.
We see people say, “But flu kills X thousands every year!” And that is probably the root fo the problem. By being so accepting of flu deaths we made ourselves more vulnerable. If we had “become alarmed” about the flu a couple years ago we wouldn’t have been nearly so vulnerable to this virus.
Yes that will be an eventual effect of the isolation during flu season. We may even be reducing the risk of a mutation in other illnesses such as influenza by world wide quarenines dramatically reducing the percentage of other respiratory infections. Next years flu season may be much more mild.
I heard that is being done.
They haven’t stopped testing for the flu. Many viral pcr tests will often show positive or negative. I’ve seen people positive for a couple of things together. Someone comes in very sick with pneumonia or respiratory copd exacerbation. They go onto test for covid19 if everything else is negative and it still might pan out as negative. What they’ve started to do is to test for covids even if positive for flu, or rhinovirus....ect. One can have both and a bacterial sepsis as well.
A lot of times though when the body is engaged in major warfare with a bug, other viruses don’t take hold because the body takes them out before the new viruses can gain a foot hold. Bacteria are different and just love messy viral lung slop. They can multiply faster than the body can take them out if the body is also dealing with a bad virus. Bacteria don’t need a cell to replicate themselves like viruses do.
Thats EXACTLY what everyone has been doing for weeks.
First test for flu and possibly RSV and Strep.
If NEG
Test for Covid
we’ve only been able to test for Covid locally for about 2 weeks.
There are multiple PCR viral panels they do that check for about 30 viruses all at once. They are now, where I work sending them onto covids testing as well should the criteria fit.
Of course it’s possible but it would be pretty rare.
They ARE testing for flu, in addition.
Some insurance companies are loosening their copay and testing requirements so you might ask if this is available to you, particularly if your doctor prescribes it.
The kits that are on the market are for 20 or so tests so you might be able to provide them to family and friends at ~$25 per test. I did not check to see the expiration timelines so I can’t say if they would last into future flu seasons.
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