Viral dynamics of Omicron and Delta SARS-CoV-2 variants with implications for timing of release from isolation: a longitudinal cohort study.
Tara C BoutonAtarere JosephJacquelyn TurcinovicScott SeitzCole Sher-JanMadison GilbertLaura WhiteZhenwei ZhouMohammad M HossainVictoria OverbeckLynn Doucette-StammJudy PlattHannah E LandsbergDavidson H HamerCatherine KlapperichKaren R JacobsonJohn H ConnorPublished in: Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (2022)
The majority of our Delta- and Omicron-infected cohort culture-converted by day 6, with no further impact of booster vaccination on sterilization or cycle threshold decay. We found that rapid antigen testing may provide reassurance of lack of infectiousness, though guidance to mask for days 6-10 is supported by our finding that 17% of participants remained culture positive after isolation.