Although life has returned to normal in many ways around the world in light of the COVID-19 pandemic in the summer of 2024, those who have recently tested positive for the virus may be wondering what has changed in terms of symptoms and CDC guidelines.
Although the Illinois Department of Public Health no longer reports weekly case data, it is possible that attendees of Lollapalooza or other large events may have tested positive in recent days.
If you have been infected with COVID in the past months or years, the guidelines may be different this time, as the CDC made significant changes earlier this year.
What you should know:
In March, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its COVID guidelines to align them with the guidelines for other respiratory infections. Anyone infected with COVID-19 no longer needs to stay away from others for five days, the CDC said. This effectively eliminated the recommendation for five days of isolation.
If symptoms are mild and improving, and it has been one day since a fever occurred, people can return to work or normal activities, but the CDC still recommends that people with symptoms stay home.
“The recommendations suggest returning to normal activities when symptoms have improved overall for at least 24 hours and, if fever was present, it has resolved without the use of fever-reducing medication,” the guide says.
Once activities resume, the CDC recommends “additional prevention strategies” for five more days, including wearing a mask and maintaining distance from others.
The agency stresses that people should still try to prevent infections in the first place by getting vaccinated, washing their hands and taking measures to get more fresh air outdoors.
As part of the guidelines, the CDC suggests:
- Remain current vaccination protection to protect people from serious illness, hospitalization, and death. This includes flu, COVID-19, and RSV, if you are eligible.
- Practice good hygiene For example, by covering your mouth when coughing or sneezing, washing or disinfecting your hands frequently, and cleaning frequently touched surfaces.
- Measures for cleaner airfor example by supplying more fresh outside air, cleaning the indoor air or gathering outdoors.
The change comes at a time when COVID-19 no longer poses a threat to public health. At the start of the pandemic, the disease was the third leading cause of death in the country, and last year it was ranked tenth.
Most people have some immunity to the coronavirus due to previous vaccinations or infections. And many people are not adhering to the five-day isolation rule anyway, some experts say.
What are the symptoms?
- Cough
- Sore throat
- Runny nose
- Sneeze
- fatigue
- Headache
- Muscle pain
- Altered sense of smell
- traffic jam
- Fever or chills
- Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
- Nausea or vomiting
- Diarrhea
Last year, a Chicago-area doctor said she noticed changes in the most common symptoms her patients reported when the JN.1 variant became dominant.
Dr. Chantel Tinfang, a family medicine physician at Provident Hospital’s Sengstacke Health Center in Cook County, noted at the time that many of the cases she treated were less likely to involve fever, body aches and chills and more likely to involve sore throat, fatigue and cough.
“We still see some patients who experience loss of appetite, loss of taste or smell. So it kind of depends,” she said. “One patient was just very, very tired. She couldn’t really do much. And then you know … it’s different. It’s not just coughing and shortness of breath. We still see that, though.”
She recommends seeing your doctor if your symptoms do not improve after the recommended isolation period.
As for duration, symptoms can last for several days, but in some cases even longer.
“Some people infected with the virus that causes COVID-19 may experience long-term effects from their infection, called long-COVID or post-COVID conditions (PCC),” the CDC said in a statement.
Such symptoms can last for weeks and possibly even years.
