Medically reviewed by Kate Colby, MPH People with asymptomatic or mild COVID illness generally test negative after nine days, but a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test can still be positive for up to ...

Last week, I was about to go on a date, and because I'm severely immunocompromised, we agreed he would take a COVID test using one of my rapid home PCR tests. It was a courtesy—he felt perfectly fine— ...

There are three different ways to test for COVID-19: PCR tests, antigen tests and antibody tests. Here are the differences.

If you use an antigen test, a positive result is reliable, but a negative test is not always accurate. If your antigen test is negative, take another antigen test after 48 hours or take a PCR test ...

So who is eligible for a PCR? Below are the current guidelines for using RATs versus PCR for each state – and the advice for what to do if you test positive or have COVID symptoms.

Most people who contract COVID-19 likely won’t experience symptoms for more than two weeks at most, but could test positive even after that.

A false positive result is possible with a rapid COVID-19 test. It happens when a person does not have COVID-19 but still tests positive for the disease.

But lab-based PCR tests amplify the genetic material in a different way to this home-based test. So, strictly speaking, this new test is not a PCR test. The new test isn’t a RAT either.