​COVID-19 Symptoms & Testing

Symptoms

​People with COVID-19 have had a wide range of symptoms reported – ranging from mild symptoms to severe illness.

These symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus:

  • Fever
  • Cough
  • Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
  • Diarrhea
  • Chills
  • Repeated shaking with chills
  • Muscle pain
  • Headache
  • Sore throat
  • New loss of taste or smell

View long-term COVID-19 effects.

Symptom Checker

Use the CDC online tool opens In A New Window to help you make decisions and seek appropriate medical care.

Additionally, when you download the COVID Alert PA app, you can input how you are feeling each day and report if you are experiencing symptoms. This will help if you later test positive for COVID-19 and are asked when your symptoms started.

I Have Symptoms. Now What?

  • If they’re mild: Most people who have mild symptoms can recover at home without medical care. If you’d like to get tested for a diagnosis, contact your healthcare provider or schedule an appointment at a publicly accessible testing site. Find a testing site in PennsylvaniaOpens In A New Window. If you do not want to get tested, it’s still important to stay home, isolate and avoid contact with others, rest, and drink fluids. If you feel worse, call your health care provider. 
  • If they’re severe: For severe symptoms (including a fever above 100°), call your health care provider. If you don’t have a health care provider, call the nearest hospital or urgent care to schedule an appointment.
  • If it’s an emergency: Call 911. Emergency warning signs can include:
    • Trouble breathing
    • Persistent pain or pressure in the chest
    • New confusion
    • Inability to wake or stay awake
    • Bluish lips or face

I Don’t Have Symptoms, But I’ve Been Exposed or Possibly Exposed to an Infected Person. Now What?

  • Individuals who have been in close contact with a confirmed COVID-19 case should be tested regardless of the presence of symptoms. Close contacts are people who have been within 6 feet of a person with a confirmed COVID-19 infection for at least 15 minutes. You will need to quarantine for 10 days after your last exposure to an infected personor a 7 day quarantine with a negative test on or after day 5 of quarantine.

I Was Tested. Now What?

​View the COVID-19 Patient Instructions for Self-Isolation While Awaiting Laboratory Results

Infomation Sources:

COVID-19 symptoms and testing. Department of Health. (n.d.). https://www.health.pa.gov/topics/disease/coronavirus/Pages/Symptoms-Testing.aspx#.

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