Specific neurological symptoms seen in people with COVID-19 include loss of smell, inability to taste, muscle weakness, tingling or numbness in the hands and feet, dizziness, confusion, delirium, seizures, and stroke. These may occur with or without respiratory symptoms.įor example, COVID-19 affects brain function in some people. People with COVID-19 can also experience neurological symptoms, gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms, or both. In some people, COVID-19 causes more severe symptoms like high fever, severe cough, and shortness of breath, which often indicates pneumonia. When the virus does cause symptoms, common ones include fever, body ache, dry cough, fatigue, chills, headache, sore throat, loss of appetite, and loss of smell. Some people infected with the virus have no symptoms. And they may be among the long haulers - people who continue to experience fatigue, brain fog, shortness of breath, or other symptoms weeks and months after their illness.Īnd as is true in other age groups, COVID illness and death has a disproportionate impact on younger adults of color.Įveryone, including younger and healthier people, should get the vaccine once they are eligible. However, younger adults are less likely than older adults to die of COVID-19: Adults in the 18 to 39 age range account for less than 2% of COVID deaths, compared to 81% for people older than 65.īut younger people can get sick enough from the disease to require hospitalization or to die. To what extent have younger adults been impacted by COVID-19?Īccording to the CDC's COVID Data Tracker, through early February 2021, about 44% of COVID cases in the US have been in adults aged 18 to 39 years. To check the level of virus transmission in your area, visit the CDC's COVID Data Tracker. For people who are not fully vaccinated, the CDC continues to recommend mask wearing and other preventive measures in some outdoors settings and in most indoor settings. The CDC also advises anyone at increased risk to wear a mask indoors, regardless of the level of community transmission. That’s why people who are fully vaccinated can still carry greater amounts of the Delta variant, making it more likely that they could spread the virus to others.Īs a result, in July 2021, the CDC advised all people - vaccinated and unvaccinated - to wear masks in public indoor places in areas of the country with substantial or high transmission of the virus. Once these variants get inside the cells, they rapidly make copies of themselves, increasing what is called the viral load. While you’re also less likely to spread the virus once you’ve been vaccinated, the Delta variant (now the dominant variant in the US) is more capable than the original virus of getting into cells that line the nose, mouth, and throat. Vaccines offer excellent (though not complete) protection against moderate to severe disease, hospitalization, and death.
And certain underlying medical conditions may increase the risk of serious COVID-19 for individuals of any age.Įveryone, including younger and healthier people, should get the vaccine once they are eligible, to protect both themselves and their community. Although the risk of serious illness or death from COVID-19 increases steadily with age, younger people can get sick enough from the disease to require hospitalization. Do adults younger than 65 who are otherwise healthy need to worry about COVID-19? It has spread so rapidly and to so many countries that the World Health Organization has declared it a pandemic (a term indicating that it has affected a large population, region, country, or continent).
The most up-to-date information is available from the World Health Organization, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Johns Hopkins University. What is COVID-19?ĬOVID-19, short for "coronavirus disease 2019," is the name of the disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. SARS-CoV-2, short for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, is the official name for the coronavirus responsible for COVID-19. Visit our Coronavirus Resource Center for more information on coronavirus and COVID-19.Ĭoronaviruses are an extremely common cause of colds and other upper respiratory infections. And reviewing the common symptoms of COVID-19 can help you know if it's time to self-isolate. Knowing how COVID has impacted people of all ages may reinforce the need for everyone to adopt health-promoting behaviors. For example, understanding how the virus spreads reinforces the importance of prevention measures.
Symptoms, spread and other essential information about the coronavirus and COVID-19Īs we continue to learn more about coronavirus and COVID-19, it can help to reacquaint yourself with some basic information.