A head cold, or common cold, is a viral infection of the nose and throat. It is usually a mild illness, and involves symptoms in the head, such as a stuffed, runny nose and watery eyes.

Common cold and sinus infections share similar symptoms. Knowing the difference is important. Colds usually resolve within 10 ...

The sneaky viruses behind your symptoms When it comes to the common cold, you’re dealing with a rotating cast of viral villains. Over 200 different viruses can cause those familiar cold symptoms ...

“Measles typically begins with cold-like symptoms, which can make it difficult to distinguish from other common illnesses." By Natasha Hinde 09/04/2025 06:00am BST | Updated April 10, 2025 ...

Catarrhal phase (1–2 weeks): Mimics a cold with sneezing and mild cough. Paroxysmal phase (1–6 weeks): Intense coughing spells, often worse at night, which may cause vomiting or breathlessness.

But those can also be accompanied by fatigue, a headache or sinus pressure — which, if you’ve never faced allergies before, you might mistake as cold symptoms, Dr. Epstein said.

The virus has pretty unassuming beginnings. It starts with upper respiratory symptoms like a cold or flu. Adults may experience severe fever, which even may climb to 104°F or higher.

Sudden vision loss or double vision. Stiff neck with vomiting. High fever. ER doctors will want to rule out or diagnose and treat conditions such as brain bleeding, stroke, meningitis ...

And while general fatigue and muscle aches could signal COVID-19, a cold or the flu, those symptoms could also be West Nile virus, or a fungal infection endemic to Arizona called Valley fever.

What are the symptoms of measles in adults? As mentioned, the virus has pretty unassuming beginnings: You can expect the typical slate of upper respiratory symptoms that you might get with a cold ...

Can adults get RSV? Yes. "Usually, as an adult, when you become ill with RSV you have mild cold-like symptoms such as a runny nose, sore throat, cough and a headache.