Respiratory Illnesses
Each year, respiratory viruses are responsible for millions of illnesses in the United States. The good news is there are actions you can take to help protect yourself and others from respiratory viruses.
Common Respiratory Viruses
Respiratory viruses are viruses that cause illnesses in the respiratory system. These illnesses share similar symptoms, risk factors, and prevention strategies.
Common respiratory viral illnesses include:
- Flu
- COVID-19
- RSV
- Adenovirus
- Rhinovirus/Enterovirus (common cold)
- Parainfluenza
- Parvovirus B19 (Fifth Disease)
Symptoms
Respiratory viruses may cause both upper respiratory tract symptoms (the vocal chords and above) and lower respiratory tract symptoms (below the vocal chords). Some viruses also affect the nose, throat and lungs, and can lead to serious lung infections, such as pneumonia.
Examples of respiratory virus symptoms:
- Fever
- Chills
- Fatigue (tiredness)
- Cough
- Runny or stuffy nose
- Decrease in appetite
- Sore throat
- Vomiting
- New loss of taste or smell
- Headache, muscle or body aches
- Diarrhea
- Weakness
When to seek emergency care:
Risk Factors
Illnesses caused by common respiratory viruses like COVID-19, flu, and RSV can make anyone sick. However, some people have risk factors that can increase their chances of getting very sick (severe illness).
Groups of people at a higher risk for respiratory illnesses:
- Older adults whose immune systems tend to not work as well and are more likely to have underlying health conditions.
- Young children have immune systems that are still developing and small airways.
- People with weakened immune systems can have lower defenses against infections and their bodies may have a harder time building lasting protection from immunization or prior infection.
- People with disabilities are more likely to have underlying medical conditions, live in congregate settings, or experience factors and conditions stemming from social determinants of health that increase their risk for poor outcomes from respiratory infections.
- Pregnant and recently pregnant people because pregnancy can cause changes in the immune system, heart, and lungs that make people more likely to get very sick from respiratory viruses.
Prevention
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has released recommendations to help lower the risk of spreading respiratory illnesses. The strategies are broken into two categories: core prevention strategies and additional prevention strategies.
Core Prevention Strategies:
CDC recommends that everyone use core prevention strategies. These are steps you can take to protect yourself and others.
- Stay up to date with immunizations
- Practice good hygiene
- Take steps for cleaner air
- When you may have a respiratory virus:
- Use precautions to prevent spread
- Seek health care promptly for testing and/or treatment
Additional Prevention Strategies:
Key Times for Prevention:
Layering prevention strategies can be especially helpful when:
- Respiratory viruses are causing a lot of illness in your community.
- You or the people around you were recently exposed to a respiratory virus, are sick, or are recovering.
- You or the people around you have risk factors for severe illness.
Prevention Snapshot
Vaccine Locator
Feeling Sick?
- Stay home and away from others (including people you live with who are not sick) if you have respiratory virus symptoms that aren’t better explained by another cause.
- Seek health care right away for testing and/or treatment if you believe you may have a respiratory virus.
- Stay home until, for at least 24 hours, both are true:
- Your symptoms are getting better overall, and
- You have not had a fever (and are not using fever-reducing medication).
- When you go back to your normal activities, consider taking added precautions over the next 5 days.
- You may still be able to spread the virus that made you sick, even if you are feeling better. Added precautions can reduce this risk. They include steps for cleaner air, hygiene, masks, physical distancing, and/or testing.
- If you develop a fever or you start to feel worse after going back to normal activities, stay home and away from others again.
Don’t Forget:
When you have a respiratory virus infection, you can spread it to others. How long someone can spread the virus depends on different factors, including how sick they are (severity) and how long their illness lasts (duration). This is not the same for everyone.
When, for at least 24 hours, your symptoms are getting better overall and you have not had a fever (and are not using fever-reducing medication), you are typically less contagious, but it still takes more time for your body to fully get rid of the virus. During this time, you may still be able to spread the virus to others. Using precautions for the next 5 days can help reduce this risk. After this 5-day period, you are typically much less likely to be contagious.
Trends and Data
The following dashboards display trends for COVID-19, influenza (flu), and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) locally and across the nation. They provide valuable insights to help individuals make informed decisions based on current disease activity. This is particularly important for those living or working with high-risk individuals. The data can guide choices such as wearing masks, practicing physical distancing, or avoiding high-risk situations and events where transmission is more likely.
Explore Respiratory Illness Data:
- Respiratory Virus Activity Levels (National and State Data)
- Respiratory Virus Data Channel (National, State, and County Data)
Looking for more information? Use the dropdowns below to explore other sources of COVID-19, flu, and RSV data.
COVID-19 Data
- Your Community Snapshot: See COVID-19 activity levels in Livingston County.
- CDC COVID-19 Data Tracker: See indicators for test positivity, emergency department visits, hospitalizations, and deaths.
Flu Data
- Your Community Snapshot: See influenza activity levels in Livingston County.
- Michigan Flu Surveillance: View current or archived influenza surveillance reports.
- Michigan Respiratory Illness Dashboard: View seasonal influenza vaccination coverage.
- CDC Flu View: Surveillance report showing seasonal influenza activity.
- CDC Flu View Interactive: Compare data interactively.
- CDC Weekly U.S. Map: Review the influenza summary map.
RSV Data
- Your Community Snapshot: See RSV activity levels in Livingston County.
- CDC RSV Trends: View state and regional trends of laboratory-confirmed hospitalizations.
- CDC RSV-NET: Follow trends of RSV-associated hospitalizations in different demographic groups and across seasons.
Other Respiratory Illness Data
- CDC Trends: View respiratory illnesses from bacteria and viruses other than COVID-19, flu, and RSV. It also shows the latest emergency department trends for conditions that various respiratory germs can cause.
Last Modified April 27, 2026
