CHESAPEAKE, Va (WAVY) – The parking lot is full at Patient First in Chesapeake on a Monday at midday.

“We’re already at 90 patients, and it’s 12,” said Physician Assistant Stephen Biggs.

This fall and winter have been rough on a lot of people’s health.

It started with that tripledemic of flu, RSV and COVID-19. Now, it’s something else keeping lots of people out of work and school in Hampton Roads.

Today Biggs is seeing a lot of strep throat, adenovirus “(and) everything else under the sun you can imagine,” he told WAVY.

Kids who were masked up and socially isolated during the pandemic didn’t build strong immune defenses.

“Basically if you have a kid in school, they are going to be sick, 5, 6 times for the year,” Biggs said.

The classic sign of strep is a sore throat, but it can present in different ways: fever, stomach pain, nausea/vomiting and sometimes a rash.

Adenovirus also comes with a wide range of symptoms including: congestion, sore throat, bronchitis, vomiting and pink eye.

There are antibiotics to treat strep, but there is no specific treatment for Adenovirus. Biggs said it is best to get a strep test to confirm.

You should be able to return to school or work 24 hours after treatment for strep.
Adenovirus or Norovirus – which causes vomiting and diarrhea can take 3 to 5 days to run their course.

Biggs best advice?

“Wash your hands, cover your mouth,” Biggs said. “If you’re sick, stay at home. That’s the best thing. Don’t spread it to everybody.”