Got the flu? How soon can you go back to work or school? H3N2 symptoms
Posted: 01/14/2013
If you or your child comes down with the flu, you should stay home from work and school.
But when is it safe to go back?
No one wants to be around a sick co-worker or classmate. The best thing you can do for yourself and everyone else is to stay home until you get better.
Doctors say it usually takes about a week to get over the flu.
You're actually contagious the day before you start to show symptoms. And you can remain contagious for up to a week after that.
So when is it ok to go back to work or school? Doctors say it all depends on when your fever goes down.
"So when you're safe to go back to school or work is when you haven't had a fever for 24 hours and you haven't taken any medications to bring down that fever is generally when we can say you can go back to work or school. But you may still have a cough," says Dr. Melissa Denham with Patient First.
In some cases, you may have a cough that lasts for weeks and you could have that run down feeling for up to a month after getting the flu.
Copyright 2013 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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