Coronavirus: Information & Resources

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Allergies, Cold, Flu or COVID-19 Virus?

This information has been reviewed and approved by Flavia Hoyte, MD and Jared Eddy, MD (March 2020).

Here's how to tell the difference between allergy symptoms and the novel 2019 Coronavirus.

Symptoms	Allergies	Cold	Influenza	COVID-19
Symptoms begin	Gradually	Gradually	Abruptly	Within 14 days of exposure
Symptoms last	Allergy season	4 - 10 days	5 - 7 days	Varies by person
Body aches	—	✓	✓	Sometimes
Chills	—	Less common	✓	Sometimes
Dry cough	✓	✓	✓	✓
Exposure to germs	—	✓	✓	✓
Fatigue/weakness	Sometimes	✓	✓	✓
Fever	—	Less common	✓	✓
Headaches	✓	Less common	✓	Sometimes
Itchy eyes	✓	—	—	—
Nasal congestion	✓	✓	✓	Less common
Nausea/Vomiting/Diarrhea	—	Sometimes	Sometimes	Sometimes
New loss of taste or smell	Sometimes	Sometimes	Sometimes	✓
Repeated shaking with chills	—	Sometimes	Sometimes	Sometimes
Runny nose	✓	—	—	Less common
Sneeze	✓	✓	✓	Sometimes
Sore throat	Sometimes	✓	✓	Sometimes
Shortness of breath	Sometimes	Less common	✓	✓
Symptoms get worse	—	—	✓	✓

Stay home and away from others.
Monitor symptoms.
Rest.
Cover coughs and sneezes.
Wash hands with soap and water often.
Treat symptoms.
Contact your doctor if you have a fever, cough, difficulty breathing or existing chronic disease.