Nasal Congestion & Sneezing: Allergies or COVID-19?
How do you know if the nasal congestion and sneezing you’re experiencing are spring allergies or COVID-19?
“If you have a fever, it isn’t allergies,” said Russell Traister, M.D., assistant professor of pulmonary, critical care, allergy and immunologic diseases at Wake Forest Baptist Health. “Also, if taking an antihistamine improves your symptoms, it is likely allergies and not a virus.”
Allergy symptoms:
- Itchy, watery eyes and nose
- Nasal congestion or stuffiness
- No cough, unless you also have asthma
COVID-19 symptoms:
- Fever
- Dry cough
- Shortness of breath
“Adults who are over 50 and have never experienced seasonal allergies before are not likely to develop them now,” he said. “If you are sensitive to tree pollen, staying indoors and keeping the windows closed can help minimize symptoms.”
About Wake Forest Baptist Health
Wake Forest Baptist Health (www.wakehealth.edu) is a pre-eminent academic medical center and health care system based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Wake Forest Baptist Health’s main components are an integrated clinical system – anchored by Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, an 885-bed tertiary-care hospital in Winston-Salem – that includes Brenner Children’s Hospital and a NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, five community hospitals, more than 300 primary and specialty care locations with more than 2,500 physicians; and Wake Forest School of Medicine, a recognized leader in experiential medical education and leading-edge translational research in aging and Alzheimer’s disease, cardiovascular disease and stroke, cancer and precision medicine, diabetes and metabolism and regenerative medicine. Wake Forest Innovations, part of the School of Medicine, is the commercialization enterprise focused on advancing health care.