{"id":817749,"date":"2026-08-18T14:54:10","date_gmt":"2026-08-18T14:54:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/817749\/"},"modified":"2026-08-18T14:54:10","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T14:54:10","slug":"covid-is-spreading-in-these-regions-right-now-here-are-the-symptoms-to-watch-for","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/817749\/","title":{"rendered":"COVID Is Spreading In These Regions Right Now \u2014 Here Are The Symptoms To Watch For"},"content":{"rendered":"

More and more people throughout the United States are coming down with COVID-19 <\/a>as we head toward the end of summer.<\/p>\n

According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, COVID-19 infections are increasing or likely increasing in<\/a>\u00a0all 50 states.<\/p>\n

Health: COVID-19 Is Surging Again \u2014 And These Regions Are Facing The Sharpest Spikes<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cOverall, put together in the U.S., the trend does seem to be going up,\u201d said Dr. Geeta Sood<\/a>,\u00a0an infectious diseases physician and epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore.<\/p>\n

CDC data shows that cases are increasing most in the South and West<\/a>, but cases are on the rise outside of these regions, too.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt doesn\u2019t seem to be … at the high levels that it was last year, and it\u2019s not unusual for us to be seeing upward trends in late summer because we\u2019ve been seeing that for a few years now,\u201d Sood said.<\/p>\n

COVID tends to peak several times throughout the year \u2014 in September-October and again later in the winter, according to Dr. Michael Angarone<\/a>, an infectious diseases specialist at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago.<\/p>\n

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Overall, your chance of getting COVID-19 right now is on the lower side, but it is certainly still possible, Angarone noted.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe number of cases and the burden of SARS-CoV-2 is on the low side, but that can change, and and I think we are expecting that it\u2019s going to change as we go into that fall, early winter season,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The most common COVID-19 symptoms are what you\u2019d expect.<\/p>\n

If you do get COVID-19 this summer or early fall, you\u2019ll likely notice the same upper respiratory symptoms you associate with a COVID-19 infection.<\/p>\n

According to Angarone, those are \u201crunny nose and a little bit of congestion, sore throat, fevers.\u201d With more severe COVID, you may notice difficulty breathing, a bad cough and shortness of breath, he added.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow that pretty much everyone has probably had COVID at least once, it\u2019s still those same symptoms \u2014 that upper respiratory symptoms \u2014 and the illness still falls into that respiratory viral category,\u201d Angarone said.<\/p>\n

Like this article? Keep independent journalism alive. Support HuffPost<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Levels<\/a><\/p>\n

Levels of COVID-19 are growing, or thought to be growing, in all 50 states.Yuichiro Chino via Getty Images<\/p>\n

With rising COVID-19 levels, here\u2019s how to protect yourself.<\/p>\n

COVID is not a virus that\u2019s easy to predict, but Sood said it\u2019s reasonable to think that cases will continue to increase as fall nears.<\/p>\n

\u201cPart of the reason is because of what we\u2019ve seen in previous years and part of it is the reduced immunity that we\u2019re seeing,\u201d Sood said.<\/p>\n

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Immunity levels throughout communities are very low due to poor vaccination rates (just 17.5% of adults<\/a> got the last COVID shot) and low levels of immunity from infection, Sood explained.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe haven\u2019t seen huge waves like we did [with] the Omicron wave, which pretty much infected everybody. Therefore, it\u2019s very likely and possible that if you\u2019re exposed, you\u2019re more likely to develop disease,\u201d Sood added.<\/p>\n

How can you protect yourself? There are several steps you can take.<\/p>\n

\u201cAir hygiene,\u201d as Sood calls it, is a great way to protect yourself, which includes \u201copening windows, not being in crowded, congested areas and wearing masks.\u201d These practices also protect you from other respiratory viruses.<\/p>\n

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The COVID vaccine is also a great way to prevent severe infections and hospitalization and decrease your risk of developing long COVID<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI still recommend to people to get vaccinated,\u201d Angarone said. \u201cWe know the vaccine is the best way to prevent serious illness … and I think that goes for all ages.\u201d Vaccination is important and helpful whether you\u2019re immunocompromised or not, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think just protecting ourselves and each other as best we can will keep this virus at the lower state that it is, and not the severe infections we were experiencing four and five years ago,\u201d\u00a0Angarone said.<\/p>\n

If you get sick or are exposed to COVID-19, there are also a few things you should know.<\/p>\n

If you do notice upper respiratory symptoms like runny nose or cough, get a COVID test,\u00a0Angarone said. If you test positive, stay home and away from others so you don\u2019t get them sick, too.<\/p>\n

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If you test positive, let your doctor know so they can prescribe the best treatment, Sood added.<\/p>\n

Many folks are eligible for Paxlovid, an antiviral treatment that can help you get better faster.\u00a0<\/p>\n

If you\u2019ve been around someone who tests positive for COVID, there\u2019s also a new treatment that may help you stay healthy. The prescription pill, Xocova<\/a>, is recommended for use after exposure to someone with COVID-19 and helps prevent a COVID infection in people ages 12 and older. The medication is meant to be started within 72 hours of direct exposure, according to Angarone, such as after interacting with a co-worker or a sick partner.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s hard to know what the benefit of this medication is for kind of general exposure,\u201d such as taking it after being on an airplane or at a concert. \u201cIf they know they\u2019ve been directly exposed, I think talking to their primary clinician about getting this medication, especially if you can get to that provider within 24, 48 hours of that exposure, we know that there\u2019s benefit to that,\u201d Angarone added.<\/p>\n

And some may benefit from it more than others.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe question becomes, who should use it? Like if it was me … hypothetically, living with other healthy adults, the benefit may not be as great,\u201d Sood said. \u201cBut if you\u2019re in a nursing home or are living with somebody with high-risk conditions, it\u2019s a truly effective medication that\u2019s been studied beautifully.\u201d<\/p>\n

Related…<\/p>\n

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