You’ve got the sore throat, runny nose and cough (or any of the other common COVID-19 symptoms right now), but when you swab your nose and take a test, it comes out negative. Is there a chance you still have COVID-19? Could it be something else?
The answer – to both questions – is yes. “If you are feeling symptomatic and you test negative for COVID-19, usually the most likely reason is you’re infected with something else besides COVID-19,” said Dr. Andrew Pekosz, a virologist and professor at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, during a media briefing.
After all, two other respiratory viruses, influenza and RSV, are starting to circulate at high levels in many states, and all three illnesses have overlapping symptoms.
But Pekosz went on to say that a negative test doesn’t really change much as far as next steps go.
“If you’re feeling sick, there really should be no difference whether you’re testing positive for COVID-19, flu or RSV,” he said. “If you’re feeling sick, stay home, take care of yourself. If you’re in a high-risk group, seek medical attention so you can get some advice as to what to do. There are a lot of viruses out there that are causing similar spectrums of diseases. So if you’re feeling sick, you are sick.”