An inconclusive can mean one of three cases:

  1. The person has tested positive, most likely within the last 12 weeks. Viral RNA is still detectable, but the person is not infectious.
  2. The person has had recent exposure but is too early to yield a positive detection. They are at the very early stages of an infection, likely not infectious at the time the sample was provided; however, viral loads can reach infectious levels in as little as 6 - 18hours. Persons should be treated as presumptive positive, begin quarantine and take a confirmatory test 2-3 days from the date of the first sample submission.
  3. The person is at the very end of an infection the viral loads have ramped down to noninfectious levels. If the person has never tested positive before, a confirmatory test is recommended within 3-5 days of the first sample submission. A second inconclusive or negative result will confirm that the person is not carrying infectious loads of virus and can end quarantine.