When to expect covid negative result after Paxlovid treatment

[Random78]

Hi All. It's been a while since I last posted. Does anyone have insight into when to expect a negative result once 5 days of Pax treatment is complete? I found most symptoms dissipated on day 2 of the treatment, other than headache, taste and fatigue - however the day following the last dose, runny nose has returned and still testing positive. All the best

Helena

[RZ8983DV]

In my case I tested negative the day after I finished Paxlovid

[Random78 in reply to RZ8983DV]

Thank you for responding - still testing positive today 😶

[RobertCLL]

I tested positive on the 26th Dec. Received 5 days of Paxlovid. After a brief period of testing negative, I am still positive a month later. However, most symptoms, apart from a productive cough in the morning have dissipated.

[Random78 in reply to RobertCLL]

Thank you Robert. I still have headaches and runny nose, though energy picking up a little

[RobertCLL in reply to RobertCLL]

I tested again today and the line is getting faint. So far for me 30 days.

[Pageboy]

Hi Helena, if you do a search for Paxlovid or Covid you will find lots of responses and experiences from those of us who have taken Paxlovid. I don’t want to say when you’ll test negative because, like most things, it’s different for all of us. I was three days in when I tested negative, but it came back two days after I finished the course and lasted three weeks. Symptoms were mild.

[Random78 in reply to Pageboy]

Thanks Pageboy. I think testing daily might be best for a while 🙂

[Blue-bird_]

My partner was told that he will test positive on a PCR test for possibly months. If your symptoms have subsided and you get a negative lateral flow, you are no longer considered contagious. That's what we were told anyway.

[Random78 in reply to Blue-bird_]

Thanks Blue-bird. I'm testing via lateral flow. 🙂

[RobertCLL in reply to Blue-bird_]

I have also been told that a PCR is a lot more sensitive.

[TroutFly]

I tested positive for a month after Paxlovid. My symptoms were better. My oncologist said to stop testing because I could test positive for several months.

[Random78 in reply to TroutFly]

Thanks Troutfly - that's interesting. Were you running PCRs or LFs?

[TroutFly in reply to TroutFly]

Abbott rapid test. CLL Society hosted a recent webinar on Covid. The immunologist who was part of the program said if you don’t have worsening symptoms, stop testing. Apparently some immunocompromised people will continue to test positive for several months.

[Random78 in reply to TroutFly]

Thanks for that - I'll see if I can access the webinar 🧐

[RSilver]

I tested negative on the 2nd day of Paxlovid, during my second case of Covid, and never tested positive again.I posted about both episodes.

[Random78 in reply to RSilver]

Thanks RSilver - I was unable to find recent posts via phone - got enough energy today to log onto my laptop and will do a quick search 🙂

[wizzard166]

I had symptoms and tested positive on New Years Eve Day December 31, while on vacation in NYC. I returned home late on the night of January 1, so on January 2 I obtained and started the five day treatment. I too got better within four days, and still had a little runny nose on the sixth day. I took a test on the eighth day and was Negative. Then I took it again on the tenth day and was again Negative.

Carl

[Random78 in reply to wizzard166]

Thanks Carl. Hoping that will be the same experience for me 😀

[Vizilo]

I’m on day 4 of Paxlovid and you read my mind. Thanks for asking question for me.

BTW, all COVID symptoms disappeared after Day 2 but feel very tired with a bad taste in the mouth. Plus on Day 3, experienced Afib which stopped on its own. One wonders whether the tiredness and afib are the fault of COVID or Paxlovid or a combination of the two.

I’m not complaining - thankful for Paxlovid and for a chance to resume a semi-normal social life🥳

[Random78 in reply to Vizilo]

Thanks Vizilio. I advised my boss that this is 'magic med' because of the rapid reduction in symptoms, and like you am thankful to have access to it 🙂. My taste improved today and I have had some coffee without feeling sick!! Brain fog as a result of the tiredness is still affecting me, so won't be returning to work until I'm totally recovered.

[RobertCLL in reply to Vizilo]

The bad taste in your mouth is probably as a result of the Paxlovid. Disappears within 24 hours of stopping the 5 day treatment.

[Moma64 in reply to Vizilo]

My hubby and I had fairly mild cases of Covid in Nov 2022, however, I had an episode of very low blood pressure and very high heart rate on Day 2 while getting ready to go to and while at the Covid Centre when picking up my Paxlovid. I wore a Holter monitor for a few days at the end of Nov and, as a result, have since been diagnosed with Afib and started meds last week. I've had a history of an irregular heart beat for quite some time so Covid may possibly have contributed to my Afib diagnosis but maybe that's a good thing.....brought an existing issue to the surface which has now been treated rather than being a ticking time bomb.

[Moma64]

I was negative before I even finished the Paxlovid. The only side effect was the horrible taste - like a bunch of aspirins dissolving in the back of your throat.

[Random78 in reply to Moma64]

Thank you Moma64. I tested negative on day 8 and again on day 9. Taken an additional week off work to recuperate - felt very fragile and weak, and I wouldn't have been much help as brain fog really affected me. Thankfully now am well and will be back at working from home tomorrow. Paxlovid has been a great help this time round.

[Moma64]

Glad you're feeling better!

[Vizilo]

So, I tested negative on day 7 all my symptoms disappeared except for a slight stuffy nose. My younger brother is going on a cruise so I was looking forward to seeing him off. However, before I visited, I tested myself again. Positive again on day 16….isolating for another 5 days just to be sure. So, I’m experiencing the infamous Paxlovid rebound. I feel honoured to join the likes of Joe Biden and Tony Fauci (who by the way, took a second round of Paxlovid for the rebound since the rebound effects were worse for him than the original)

There are some scientists who believe rebounds also occur among the non-Paxlovid crowd. Most people stop testing after their first negative.

[mdsp7]

I was negative after finishing my first round of paxlovid until day 8, when I felt sick and tested positive again. But I had been helping with my grandson who had covid. So I don't know whether I had a rebound or a reinfection or both. The viral load was high. I was given a second round of paxlovid and tested negative at the end. The whole ordeal lasted about a month, late September through late October 2022. In January I caught my husband's Long Cold. That cold finally went away, too, and I am enjoying pottery classes (masked) again. Good luck, it's tough, but you can and will get better eventually! Keep warm.