The isolation period for COVID patients with no symptoms has been reduced to five days in the US.

New advice from the US Centres for Disease Control (CDC) notes that asymptomatic patients can end their isolation after five days – but must wear a mask around others for the next five.

The CDC update is not mandatory; however, states and businesses generally follow the advice.

US Chief Medical Advisor Dr Anthony Fauci warned that the new advice only applies to those without symptoms.

“I mean, obviously, if you have symptoms, you should not be out but if you are asymptomatic and you are infected, we want to get people back to the jobs – particularly those with the central jobs to keep our society running smoothly,” he said.

“So, I think that was a very prudent and good choice on the part of the CDC which we spent a very considerable amount of time discussing.”

In its advice, the CDC said most transmissions happen in the two days before and three days after symptoms develop.

The US has seen a surge in cases in recent days due to Omicron, which is now the country’s dominant variant.

While early evidence suggests the variant is milder than previous strains, the growing number of infections is putting pressure on several industries, including aviation.

The CDC last week shortened the isolation period for healthcare workers from 10 days to seven days.