The risk of developing dangerous symptoms of COVID-19 may be increased in people who are older. The risk may also be increased in people of any age who have other serious health problems — such as heart or lung conditions, weakened immune systems, obesity, or diabetes.
In some people, COVID-19 causes more severe symptoms like high fever, severe cough, and shortness of breath, which often indicates pneumonia. A person may have mild symptoms for about one week, then worsen rapidly. Let your doctor know if your symptoms quickly worsen over a short period of time.
The study stresses the importance of understanding that just because someone has COVID once doesn't mean they are protected from additional infection. If a person gets COVID again, it could be potentially as severe of an illness or worse."
Patients with COVID-19 are considered to have severe illness if they have SpO2 <94% on room air at sea level, PaO2/FiO2 <300 mm Hg, a respiratory rate >30 breaths/min, or lung infiltrates >50%. These patients may experience rapid clinical deterioration and should be given oxygen therapy and be hospitalized.
Some people who begin with mild symptoms of COVID-19 find that they get worse. This is more likely to happen if you have risk factors for severe disease. Common risk factors include obesity and type 2 diabetes.
Your infectious period
The COVID-19 infectious period can vary, but most people are considered infectious from 48 hours before their symptoms start and can be infectious for up to 10 days.
You are most infectious (or contagious) in the first 5 days after your symptoms start. You can also spread COVID-19 in the 48 hours before your symptoms start.
People with moderate or severe COVID-19 should isolate through at least day 10. Those with severe COVID-19 may remain infectious beyond 10 days and may need to extend isolation for up to 20 days.
On June 30, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention added three symptoms to its COVID-19 list: Congestion/stuffy nose, nausea and diarrhea. Those three new conditions now join other symptoms identified by the CDC: Fever.
In high-risk settings, they may be considered infectious from 72 hours before symptoms start. People with mild illness are generally considered recovered after 7 days if they have been asymptomatic or have not developed any new symptoms during this time. But some people may be infectious for up to 10 days.
Although many people will no longer be infectious to others after 5 days, some people may be infectious to other people for up to 10 days from the start of their infection. If you have a high temperature or still feel unwell after the 5 days, continue to try to stay at home.
If your test is positive, you are likely still contagious. You should continue to isolate and wear a mask and wait 24-48 hours to test again. If you test negative on two sequential (back-to-back) tests performed 24-48 hours apart from each other, you can end isolation and stop wearing a mask before day 10.
We know that people tend to be most infectious early in the course of their infection. With Omicron, most transmission occurs during the one to two days before onset of symptoms, and in the two to three days afterwards.
How long do omicron symptoms last? Most people who test positive with any variant of COVID-19 typically experience some symptoms for a couple weeks. People who have long COVID-19 symptoms can experience health problems for four or more weeks after first being infected, according to the CDC.
Even if mild symptoms remain, you are likely not contagious after 10 days. However, if you have a weakened immune system or severe illness (requiring hospitalization, intensive care or even intubation), you can be contagious for up to three weeks or more.
COVID sore throat usually starts feeling better after a week, though it may take a little longer to completely go away. If your sore throat isn't getting better within a week, or it's getting worse, check in with your healthcare provider.
Yale's Long COVID program aims to treat patients with lingering COVID-19 symptoms, such as fatigue, brain fog, and shortness of breath. Long COVID, the condition where symptoms that surface after recovering from COVID-19 linger for weeks, months, or even years, is still a mystery to doctors and researchers.
You can spread the common cold from a few days before your symptoms appear until all of the symptoms are gone. Most people will be contagious for up to 2 weeks. Symptoms are usually worse during the first 2 to 3 days, and this is when you're most likely to spread the virus.
A dry cough is one of the most common coronavirus symptoms, but some people may have a cough with phlegm (thick mucus). It can be difficult to control your cough but there are a few ways to help.
Many people who are infected have more mild symptoms like a scratchy throat, stuffy or runny nose, occasional mild cough, fatigue, and no fever. Some people have no symptoms at all, but they can still spread the disease.” Fever seems to be one of the more common early markers of COVID-19, Kline noted.
Nausea, vomiting and diarrhea are less common symptoms of COVID-19. Still, when they do occur, they tend to be some of the first symptoms you will experience. Diarrhea caused by COVID-19 tends to be more watery, yellow or green in color. It may be accompanied by cramping and bloating.
People with COVID-19 have had a wide range of symptoms reported – ranging from mild symptoms to severe illness. Symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus. Anyone can have mild to severe symptoms.