By NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Though it's really tough to know how asymptomatic spread of COVID-19 works, Reno County Health Department Director Nick Baldetti says if you develop symptoms, we know a little more.
"Someone who contracts COVID-19, the virus actually gestates for about nine to fourteen days," Baldetti said. "Then, symptoms begin to set forth. There's some conversation in hyphenating that window around the 9-10 day mark and not pushing it out to the full 14. That's kind of the idea of the actual viral reproduction and gestation within the individual, before symptomology takes place. It can be much sooner than that, but again, we're talking about averages."
It's still not easy to tell the impact of the virus on an individual at this point.
"It depends on your age, if you have existing health issues that might exacerbate this viral body and your immune response," Baldetti said. "Depending on how long that takes, once you become symptom free. It looks like 7-10 days after symptom-free. That's when the epidemiological definition of recovered is labeled."
Baldetti notes that right now, they don't have antibody testing to know for certain that someone has fought the virus off, they are relying on the epidemiological definition at this point.
"The seven days it's what's kind of been holding true for individuals who are quarantined from work," Baldetti said. "However long the duration of symptoms, plus that seven days has been the quarantine and we've been able to track that as a health department."
There have been few enough cases to this point that they've been able to follow up with daily calls to those with symptoms to check on their progress.