Infection may not go in 7 days, mask up: Experts

Patients who have comeout of the mandatory se-ven-day quarantine after recovering from mild or asymptomatic Covid should continue to wear masks as transmission risk amog some recovered patients may not be zero, said health experts.

- Neha.Madaan

According to the revised central guidelines, mild cases admitted to a Covid care facility or under home isolation can be discharged after at least seven days have passed from testing positive and with no fever for three successive days. There is no need for testing prior to discharge, as per the guidelines.

Dr Sanjay Pujari, a member of the national Covid task force, said, “Most transmission happens during the presymptomatic period or within 1-3 days of symptom onset. During recovery, the infectiousness of a patient drops as symptoms resolve or diminish. With a highly transmissible variant like Omicron, one has to weigh joining the workforce as soon as possible versus a very small risk of shedding infectious virus and aiding further transmission.” Transmission of viable virus even after the seven days of recovery is possible in some individuals.