Covid symptoms, testing and treatment: what you need to know about cases now

Few are constants with Covid, but one thing has remained constant over the years: cases rise in winter.

Especially in the weeks after the holidays, more people get ill because we spend time together indoors, sharing germs and spreading infections.

“It looks like the wave is coming,” said Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious disease specialist at the University of California, San Francisco.

Wastewater data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now shows high levels of the virus circulating across the country. Deaths and hospitalizations the number of virus cases has increased in recent weeks. And the up-to-date variant, XEC, now accounts for almost half of the country’s Covid-19 cases. Here’s what you need to know.

Covid symptoms to look out for

The symptoms of Covid-19 have largely remained the same over the past few years: cough, congestion, fever, sore throat, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, shortness of breath, headaches and body aches. People with Covid are often exhausted. Some people lose their sense of taste and smell.

Covid may feel different each time you are infected; symptoms don’t always progress the same way. Even though you had a sore throat last time, you may have more gastrointestinal symptoms this time.

Complicating matters is the fact that a host of other diseases are spreading rapidly in the United States: influenza, respiratory syncytial virus, whooping cough, walking pneumonia.

“It’s a cornucopia of a lot of different things this year,” said Dr. Marc Sala, co-director of the Northwestern Medicine Comprehensive Covid-19 Center in Chicago.

It can be challenging, if not impossible, to determine what virus has infected you without testing.

When – and how – to test

Laboratory PCR tests remain the gold standard for Covid diagnosis. They are available in doctor’s offices, hospitals, emergency rooms and urgent care centers. But rapid at-home tests are more widely available. There are also up-to-date ones that can detect both Covid and flu. You can still order four free Covid tests per household from the federal government.

The Food and Drug Administration has said it expects home Covid tests to detect the virus in at least 80 percent of cases.

If you wake up with Covid symptoms and have rapid tests on hand, you should get them done, said Nathaniel Hafer, an associate professor of molecular medicine at the University of Massachusetts Chan School of Medicine.

If the test result is negative, take a second test after 48 hours.

This second test is critical. Thanks to previous vaccinations and infections, the body is better able to recognize the virus and react to it. This means your immune system may trigger symptoms before enough of the virus has formed for the test to be positive.

“Weird things can always happen, like many other things in life,” Dr. Hafer said. But “if you have symptoms, you do two tests and it comes back negative for Covid, I think you can be pretty confident that what you have is not Covid.”

If you have been exposed to Covid but do not have symptoms, the FDA recommends waiting at least five full days after exposure before getting tested.

Some tests may have an expired expiration date, but the FDA has extended the expiration dates of many tests, which you can check Here.

If the test actually expired several weeks ago and has been at room temperature, such as in a closet, it is most likely still usable, Dr. Hafer said.

But keep an eye on where you store your tests in chilly weather. If the test is delivered to your door and left outside in freezing temperatures, bring the test inside before using it and wait for it to come to room temperature before using it, Dr. Hafer said.

How long have you been infected?

If the rapid test gives a positive result, it is a signal that you can transmit Covid to another person. The length of contagion varies from person to person, but you can usually expect to be contagious for at least five days. However, if you test negative a few days after the virus attack, you are most likely no longer contagious.

Treatment options

People at high risk of developing severe illness from Covid – including those over 65 or who are immunocompromised – can receive Covid treatment, which is considered effective if started within about a week of the onset of symptoms. The Department of Health and Social Care has informant places to get Covid treatment in your area.

Doctors typically turn to Paxlovid, an antiviral pill that can snail-paced down the rate at which the virus replicates in the body.

However, not everyone can take Paxlovid; this medicine may interact with some antipsychotic medicines, medicines used to treat irregular heart rhythm, some migraine medicines and other medicines.

There are other, less commonly used, treatment options for Covid, including remdesivir, an antiviral drug given by infusion in a healthcare facility. For some adult patients, doctors may also prescribe molnupiravir in the form of antiviral tablets.

The FDA also approved a drug to protect high-risk people from infection: an infusion of monoclonal antibodies called Pemgarda.

And vaccines reduce the risk of stern disease, doctors emphasize.

Vaccinations

In August, the FDA approved updated vaccines. These vaccines target variants of the virus very similar to XEC, the dominant variant currently spreading in the United States, said Dr. Ziyad Al-Aly, chief of research and development at Veterans Affairs St. Louis Healthcare System.

“It’s not like a distant cousin,” he said. “It’s very, very close.”

Immunity weakens several months after being vaccinated, but you will most likely still have protection against severe disease if you get the newest vaccines that became available this fall. And if you haven’t done so yet, it’s not too delayed.

“Some people are clearly still dying from Covid, some are still getting long Covid even if they already had it and dodged the proverbial bullet,” Dr. Al-Aly said. “It’s not insignificant – it’s not the burger we would like it to be.”