Study of NCAA athletes supports CDC revised quarantine guidelines

Catherine O'Neal, MD, Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine

A study, of NCAA athletes and the length of COVID quarantine, supports the CDC revised quarantine guidelines from 14 to 10 days after a negative test on the 5^th day or later. Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine at LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine Dr. Catherine O’Neal co-authored the study.

“But if you test in the middle of quarantine and you are negative that your risk of developing a positive test after that in the rest of the 14 days is fairly low,” said O’Neal.

The probability of developing a positive result after the tenth day was less than five percent.

The CDC reviewed data of 620 athletes that tested positive for COVID, it showed 49-percent tested positive by day two of quarantine and 73-percent tested positive by day 5.  Thus, more supporting data to reduce the quarantine hardship to ten days when testing is performed during quarantine.

O’Neal said it’s important to recognize in trying to control the pandemic that it’s extremely common to be asymptomatic and still test positive for COVID.

“And because of that we really need to be getting that test mid-quarantine whether we have symptoms or not because you could still be positive and not know it,” said O’Neal.

The study also indicated that despite close contact associated with athletics more student-athletes reported COVID exposure at social gatherings versus athletics. O’Neal said it supports one can play sports but only when strict CDC mitigation guidelines are followed.

“Which is what we see in our NCAA schools to play they have to be following CDC guideline to a T. We see that there’s very little spread during that activity,” said O’Neal.