{"id":172086,"date":"2025-08-24T16:10:10","date_gmt":"2025-08-24T16:10:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/172086\/"},"modified":"2025-08-24T16:10:10","modified_gmt":"2025-08-24T16:10:10","slug":"most-common-stratus-covid-variant-symptoms","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/172086\/","title":{"rendered":"Most Common ‘Stratus’ COVID Variant Symptoms"},"content":{"rendered":"

Every summer for the past several years, including this summer, COVID cases have increased<\/a> throughout the United States as people spend time in air-conditioned spaces and as summer travel peaks.<\/p>\n

It is expected that COVID cases will continue to rise as kids head back to school, and then reach a peak in early September<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\u201cMost of those COVID-19 [infections] are associated with two newer variants being Nimbus and Stratus \u2014 these are the strains that are contributing to that seasonal surge that we\u2019re currently seeing in the U.S.,\u201d said Dr. Matthew Lokant<\/a>, an infectious disease specialist at the West Virginia University School of Medicine.<\/p>\n

Here are the main symptoms of a COVID infection this summer and what you can do to stay healthy:<\/p>\n

COVID symptoms this summer look a lot like symptoms from earlier strains, such as fatigue, runny nose and a headache. <\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThe COVID symptoms that I\u2019m seeing in clinic aren\u2019t any different this year than I\u2019ve seen in previous years,\u201d said Andrea Harmony<\/a>, a family nurse practitioner in Philadelphia.<\/p>\n

These symptoms include fatigue, fever, congestion, runny nose and cough, Harmony noted. You may also experience body aches or a headache, added Lokant.<\/p>\n

Some people experience an upset stomach, too, said Dr. Sarah Whitley Coles<\/a>, a founding member of Those Nerdy Girls, an online organization that\u2019s dedicated to sharing accurate health and science information.<\/p>\n

\"Overall,<\/p>\n

Kittikorn Nimitpara via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Overall, symptoms of the Stratus COVID variant are the same as what doctors have seen in pervious years \u2014 fatigue, headache, fever, cough and more.<\/p>\n

A painful sore throat known as \u201crazor blade throat\u201d has been associated with current infections.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThe more dominant Nimbus strain has had more reports of very severe throat pain,\u201d Lokant said. The Stratus strain is also known<\/a> to cause this bothersome symptom.<\/p>\n

\u201cPatients have noted sharp, stabbing throat pain,\u201d he added. Online, this is known as \u201crazor blade throat,\u201d Lokant said.<\/p>\n

It certainly is true that COVID can cause a sore throat, and a pretty bad one at that, but you shouldn\u2019t let this symptom panic you. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not more dangerous, but certainly people feel miserable, and so I\u2019ve been encouraging folks, if you\u2019re starting to have a sore throat, let me know because this could very well be COVID,\u201d said Coles.<\/p>\n

Experts previously told HuffPost<\/a> that a painful sore throat has been associated with COVID infections for some time, and while this symptom won\u2019t happen to everyone, it\u2019s important to keep an eye out for it and do what you can to limit the pain. <\/p>\n

This includes staying hydrated by drinking water and herbal teas, as dehydration can irritate the dry membranes in your throat, Dr. Carrie Horn<\/a>, the chief medical officer and chief of the division of hospital and internal medicine at National Jewish Health in Colorado, previously told HuffPost<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Certain COVID symptoms do require medical attention.<\/strong><\/p>\n

According to Lokant, if you have COVID and notice certain concerning symptoms, such as difficulty breathing, chest pain or severe dehydration (which can look like dizziness and dry mouth), you should seek medical attention.<\/p>\n

Some people need medical treatment to get better, and people throughout the country are still dying from this virus.<\/p>\n

Also, if you test positive and are at high risk for disease, let your doctor know. You may qualify for medication.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re in a high-risk group, you can always take a medication like Paxlovid to help reduce your risk of serious illness, hospitalization and death,\u201d said Coles.<\/p>\n

High-risk groups include those over 65, pregnant people and immunocompromised people.<\/p>\n

Your doctor can help determine if a COVID antiviral medication is right for you, Coles added. \u201cWe know that a lot of people who would qualify for medications like Paxlovid are not getting them either because they don\u2019t realize that this is something that is available to them and can be helpful, or because there is misinformation about it,\u201d Coles noted.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cI would encourage everyone to treat it as if there is a summer [COVID] surge, because we expect that there will be, or that we\u2019re in the beginning of one, and to take the necessary precautions.\u201d<\/p>\n

– Dr. Sarah Whitley Coles<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Lots of misinformation claims that COVID is \u201cjust a cold,\u201d but that isn\u2019t true. It can lead to long COVID, hospitalization and even death,<\/p>\n

\u201cCOVID is dangerous, and particularly dangerous for folks who have immunosuppression, other chronic medical illnesses, or people who are older, and these medications can help reduce those risks,\u201d Coles added.<\/p>\n

COVID symptoms can look a lot like the symptoms of other upper respiratory infections, which makes testing important.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI think with every new variant, there is this narrative that suggests that we could tell if someone has COVID based on their symptoms, and that the symptoms are significantly different or unique, but all in all, they appear to be undistinguishable from any other upper respiratory infection,\u201d Harmony said.<\/p>\n

In other words, congestion can happen whether it\u2019s COVID or a cold.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would encourage everyone to test if you\u2019re symptomatic,\u201d added Coles. COVID tests still detect the latest COVID variants<\/a> and can help you decipher if you\u2019re sick with COVID or something else.<\/p>\n

If you do have COVID (and, really, any other upper respiratory virus), you should stay home and away from other people, rest and have lots of fluids, Lokant noted. And, again, if you\u2019re high-risk or have concerning symptoms, get medical attention.<\/p>\n

There are several things you can do to stay healthy, too.<\/strong><\/p>\n

To keep yourself from getting infected, \u201cwear a high-quality mask, like an N95, in crowded indoor places … wash [your] hands regularly and make sure that the folks around [you] are feeling well,\u201d Coles said, and added that if a loved one tells you they have the sniffles, consider rescheduling that get-together.<\/p>\n

Even before all of those preventative measures, make sure you have the latest COVID shot. \u201cVaccination is still, by far, the best way to protect yourself and your loved ones,\u201d said Coles. Updated COVID shots for 2025-2026 are expected to be available soon, although it\u2019s unclear who will be eligible for these shots<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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With cases rising, it\u2019s important to follow all of the steps to keep yourself, your loved ones and your neighbors healthy. This is especially true because there is likely more COVID out there than what\u2019s being reported by the CDC, experts say<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur data is really poor, like how much COVID is circulating in our communities, we really don\u2019t know. We\u2019re not doing a good job of tracking it anymore, so it\u2019s probably way underreported, and there\u2019s a lot more COVID going around than likely we expect,\u201d said Coles.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would encourage everyone to treat it as if there is a summer surge, because we expect that there will be, or that we\u2019re in the beginning of one, and to take the necessary precautions,\u201d Coles added.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Every summer for the past several years, including this summer, COVID cases have increased throughout the United States…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":172087,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[4140,14206,210,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-172086","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-health","8":"tag-covid-19","9":"tag-doctors","10":"tag-health","11":"tag-united-states","12":"tag-unitedstates","13":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115084618976571203","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172086","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=172086"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172086\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/172087"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=172086"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=172086"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=172086"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}