Louisville doctors seeing rise in respiratory illnesses including flu and COVID

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Right at the holidays, doctors are seeing a rapid uptick in respiratory illnesses, according to Norton Healthcare.

Dr. Robert Link with Norton Emergency Medicine said in the past few weeks, COVID cases have more than doubled and flu cases have more than quadrupled.

He said while COVID cases have recently been on the rise, they are still down compared to the 2020 pandemic numbers. He said this year is very much "mirroring" what Norton saw last year, just a few weeks behind.

"What I've been seeing in a lot of my patients that come into the emergency department, people are coming in complaining of body aches, fevers, chills, sweats, nausea," said Link. "What I will say is a little more interesting that I haven't seen in the past few years be as prevalent is a lot of people coming in with nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. It's been a very common complaint."

He said while respiratory illnesses are often associated specifically with respiratory symptoms, both flu and COVID are known to have possible symptoms including vomiting and diarrhea.

According to Link, the best way to avoid getting sick is to wash hands frequently. He also suggested disinfecting surfaces like kitchen counters and doorknobs, carrying hand sanitizer, wearing a mask in high-risk situations, and coughing/sneezing into an elbow.

He said for symptoms such as a cough or runny nose, people can go to immediate care or urgent care centers. If symptoms are more severe such as pain or difficulty breathing, Link said that would be time to head to the ER.