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COVID-19: Symptoms, Prevention and Risks

Medically reviewed by Leigh Ann Anderson, PharmD. Last updated on Oct 23, 2024.

What is COVID-19?

COVID-19 is the disease caused by an infection of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. It was first identified in the city of Wuhan, in China's Hubei province in December 2019. Since then COVID-19 has spread around the world causing unprecedented levels of illness and deaths.

The SARS-CoV-2 virus is from the family of viruses called coronaviruses that usually causes respiratory tract infections. There are multiple variants of the virus including Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta and Omicron. More recent variants in the 2024 season have resulted in more upper respiratory symptoms similar to a cold. 

Coughing, nose congestion, sore throat and feeling tired commonly occur in mild cases, but a wide range of symptoms may occur. Some people have mild symptoms, while others develop a severe illness that can lead to hospitalization or death.

Some people have also developed long-term symptoms after initial illness often referred to as “long COVID”. 

As of June 2024, nearly 1.2 million people have died of COVID-19 in the U.S.

Stay up to date on COVID-19

COVID-19 News (Newsfeed from Drugs.com)

Symptoms

Symptoms can range from mild to severe. The most common symptoms of COVID-19 include dry cough, fever, and fatigue. Typically symptoms can appear between 2 to14 days after exposure. Symptoms may progressively worsen in some people, going from mild to severe.

If you develop symptoms, you should stay at home to prevent the spread of the disease into the community. Wearing a face mask will help prevent the spread of the disease to others.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), symptoms of COVID-19 include:

Symptoms can vary based on variants circulating in the community, as well as vaccination and immune status of the person. In some cases, some people with COVID-19 have no symptoms. 

Serious COVID-19 symptoms that require immediate emergency care:

If you notice these these warning signs, call 911 (in the US) or call ahead to your local emergency facility. Notify the operator that you are seeking care for someone who has or may have COVID-19.

How do you get COVID-19?

COVID-19 is spread from one person to another when an infected person breathes out small droplets that contain virus and then the next person becomes infected when the virus enters their body by:

What happens when you get COVID-19?

There are many different outcomes for people who get COVID-19. Most people recover without requiring any hospital treatment. Some patients become ill enough to be hospitalized and a smaller number of patients become very ill and need intensive care. A small percentage of patients have complications that cause death.

If you are not vaccinated or up-to-date on your vaccines, there is a bigger risk that you may get very sick, require hospitalization, intensive care treatment or die. 

Some people have conditions which increases their risk of become seriously ill if they get COVID-19.

The conditions include:

Generally, people at higher risk of severe illness from respiratory viruses are older adults, young children, people with compromised immune systems, people with disabilities, and pregnant people.

Seek medical care right away if you have risk factors for developing severe COVID-19. Treatment may help lower your risk of severe illness and typically needs to be started within 5 days of when your symptoms started.

How do you prevent COVID-19?

The most effective way to protect yourself from COVID-19 is to get the COVID-19 vaccine (names include Comirnaty, Spikevax, Novavax or authorized versions, based on your age), which helps reduce the risk of severe disease, hospitalization and death. The COVID-19 vaccine helps your body develop immunity to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

The latest 2024-2024 COVID-19 vaccines have been update to help protect people against the recent circulating Omicron variants JN.1 (Novavax) or KP.2 (Comirnaty, Spikevax).

Although some vaccinated people can still get infected with the virus that causes COVID-19, it can still help to keep you out of the hospital due to severe disease.

Everyone should try and prevent the spread of COVID-19, whether you are vaccinated or not. The best way to prevent infection is to avoid exposure to the virus.

What to do if you have COVID-19?

Contact your healthcare provider

If you have tested positive for COVID-19, or think you may have COVID-19, contact your doctor to determine if you need a medical appointment, COVID-19 treatment or both.

Don't delay contacting a medical provider if you are at higher risk, even if your symptoms are mild. Treatment may help lower your risk of severe illness, but it needs to be started within 5 to 7 days of when your symptoms began to be effective.

If you don’t have a healthcare provider, contact your local pharmacy, community health center or health department. 

Get tested

Getting tested will help you to determine your next steps, like treatment or taking steps to prevent spreading COVID-19 to others,

At the end of September 2024, all U.S. households will be eligible to order 4 free COVID-19 tests at COVIDTests.gov. The COVID-19 tests will detect current COVID-19 variants and can be used through the end of the year.

Stay at home

Monitor your symptoms

Stay in a specific room and away from other people

Cover your cough and sneezes

Avoid sharing

Wash your hands often

Clean all surfaces

COVID-19: Treatments and Vaccines 2024-2025

Learn more: COVID-19: Prevention, Treatment and 2024-2025 Vaccines

When can I get back to my normal routine?

You can go back to your normal activities when, for at least 24 hours your symptoms are getting better overall AND you have not had a fever (and are not using fever-reducing medication).

When you go back to your normal activities, take added precaution over the next 5 days, such as:

Bottom line:

This is not all the information you need to know about COVID-19 and does not take the place of your doctor’s directions. Discuss this information and any questions you have with your doctor or other health care provider.

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Further information

Always consult your healthcare provider to ensure the information displayed on this page applies to your personal circumstances.