If you’re sick with a respiratory virus, such as COVID-19, influenza (flu), respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), or a cold, there are steps you can take to protect yourself and others.
Symptoms of a respiratory virus can include fever, chills, fatigue (tiredness), cough, runny nose, and headache, among others. See this fact sheet for symptoms of common respiratory illnesses (other languages below)
Stay Home if You're Sick
- Stay home and away from others when sick with symptoms of a respiratory virus.
- Get treatment right away if eligible.
- You can go back to your normal activities when, for at least 24 hours, both of these are true:
- Your symptoms are getting better overall, AND
- You have not had a fever (and are not using fever-reducing medication).
- Once you resume normal activities, take added precautions for the next five days.
- If you start to feel worse or get a fever after you have gone back to normal activities, stay home and away from others again and follow the steps above.
If at any point your symptoms worsen, or you have an emergency warning sign (like trouble breathing or chest pain), seek medical care immediately.
If you tested positive and don’t have symptoms
- You do not need to stay home but might still be contagious and able to spread the virus.
- Take added precautions for the next five days.
Take Added Precautions for Five Days
Taking the steps below for the next five days can help reduce the spread of respiratory disease to others. You might still be able to spread the virus that made you sick, even if you are feeling better. These steps are especially important to protect those most at risk for severe illness, including people aged 65 years and older and people with weakened immune systems.
- Take steps to improve ventilation for cleaner air at home and elsewhere.
- Wear a well fitting mask around others, especially those at high risk for severe illness.
- Keep distance from others.
- Clean and disinfect all frequently touched or high-touch surfaces daily.
- Cover coughs and sneezes and wash hands often.
- Get tested to inform your actions to prevent spread to others. This could include taking an at-home COVID-19 test before gathering with people indoors or before visiting an elderly relative.
Respiratory Virus Testing
Testing for respiratory viruses when you feel sick can help guide decisions to further protect yourself and others. Testing can be most helpful if you are at higher risk for getting very sick, so you can seek healthcare quickly and start treatment, if appropriate.
- Antigen tests for flu and COVID-19 infections usually return results quickly (around 15-30 minutes). Self-tests, or at-home tests, are often antigen tests that can be taken anywhere without having to go to a specific testing site.
- Nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs or “molecular tests”), include polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests. For these tests, samples are usually taken by a healthcare provider and transported to a laboratory. Some NAATs may be performed at the point-of-care and provide results more quickly.
- At-home multiplex tests for COVID-19 and flu are also available. These are single tests that can detect multiple viruses.
A positive test result means the virus was detected and you have or recently had an infection. A negative test means the test did not detect the virus, but this doesn’t rule out that you could have an infection.
- Learn more about testing for COVID-19 from CDC and FDA
- Learn more about testing for flu
Respiratory Virus Treatment
Most people with a respiratory illness can recover at home using over-the-counter medications like acetaminophen or ibuprofen.
However, people at increased risk for severe illness from flu or COVID-19 should get treatment to help reduce their chance of being hospitalized or dying from the disease.
People at increased risk for severe illness include:
- People with a weakened immune system (immunocompromised)
- Older adults and young children
- People with certain medical conditions (like chronic lung disease, heart disease, diabetes, or chronic kidney disease)
Treatment for flu and COVID-19 is available only by prescription. Treatment must be started within the first few days after symptoms develop to be effective. Treatment for COVID-19 and flu can be prescribed by your doctor, pharmacist, or other healthcare provider
• Learn more about COVID-19 treatment
• Learn more about flu treatment
