CNN
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You can order four free at-home Covid-19 antigen tests COVIDTests.govpart of the seventh round of the federal government’s test distribution program.
And while this round of test orders is only a month away, some people have reported that some tests are nearing their expiration dates.
It may be tempting to throw away those tests or other Covid-19 home test kits that are close to their expiration date labeled, but the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is encouraging people to check his website for extensions before throwing away potentially perfectly good tests.
This antigen testingoften called rapid tests, detect proteins called antigens from the virus that causes Covid-19. They can give a positive or negative test result at your home within a few minutes.
The FDA says shelf life is “how long the test should work as expected and is measured from the date the test was manufactured.” The expiration date is “determined at the end of the shelf life and is the date by which the test is expected to perform as accurately as when it was manufactured.”
Dr. William Schaffner, professor of infectious diseases at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, says some Covid-19 tests may continue to work well up to one year after the expiration date on the label, assuming they are stored properly.
“As long as they haven’t been severely abused and exposed to the sun or otherwise ‘aggressed’ during the test, they should still work,” Schaffner said.
Covid-19 test manufacturers determine these dates through laboratory testing, he noted.
“They manufacture the tests and then put them on the shelf,” Schaffner said. “They take them out periodically, two months, four months, six months, etc., and see how well they work so that the Food and Drug Administration can be assured that they will still function as intended.”
Experts recommend take a Covid-19 test if you develop complaints such as coughing, fever, shortness of breath and fatigue. Different respiratory infections can have similar symptoms, so it can be difficult to know what is causing your illness. The FDA recommends that people take this various rapid tests to ensure they do not have Covid-19: two negative tests for people with symptoms and three for people without symptoms, 48 hours apart.
Prescription drugs such as Paxlovid can help with the symptoms of Covid-19, and Tamiflu can treat the flu. But these medications work best if taken soon after the onset of symptoms, so it’s best to get tested if you start feeling sick.
“The airways, the nose, the throat and the bronchi that go to the lungs are simple organs,” Schaffner said. “They respond in much the same way as most types of viral respiratory infections. All of these viruses can cause cold symptoms, but then they become more symptomatic.”
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As respiratory virus season gets underway, experts recommend getting vaccinations against Covid-19, flu and RSV. if eligible, in the fall to provide protection when the season peaks in between December and March.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that everyone six months and older get a 2024-2025 certificate. Covid-19 vaccine as well as an updated one flu shot. RSV vaccination is recommended for everyone 75 years and older and for people 60 years and older who are at higher risk for serious illness.
The injections help expose your immune system to these germs so that you are less likely to become seriously ill if you contract them.
“That’s the way these vaccines work: they prevent serious disease,” Schaffner said. “Our patients grumble when they get milder infections because they say, ‘I’ve been miserable for four days. I wouldn’t call that mild.’ So we are sorry that you have had the flu for a number of days, but I am glad that you did not have to enjoy the benefits of our hospital.”