COVID-19 is still infecting New Yorkers, along with the flu and RSV, but for some people who feel ill, tests come up negative for those illnesses, raising the question: Are there other viruses going around?

Dr. Kent Hall, the chief physician executive at Mohawk Valley Health System, said there are not new illnesses going around, but there are underlying respiratory illnesses.

“Probably about 10 or 12 of them, including things like parainfluenza, and there are different species of that, just as an example,” said Hall.

Hall said the respiratory viruses do present similar symptoms to COVID, the flu or RSV.

“And so it isn’t surprising at all that you can test negative, but still have something,” Hall said.

He said respiratory viruses are traveling around, and this is the time of year when people are more prone to catching one of them “because we come indoors, we’re exposed to people all the time, we’re kind of in confined spaces and the ventilation systems kind of recirculate things.”

It's typical for people to have varying illnesses this time of year without a diagnosis. It can be a common cold.

“I will tell you that children in their first year of life get seven colds. They don’t get the same virus seven times, they get seven different viruses. So there are a number of viruses that give you colds or give you cold symptoms, and we all lump them together under the common cold,” Hall said.

Hall said if you or someone you know is experiencing active symptoms that last between 12 and 24 hours, you should contact a doctor.

“An active symptom is you are having a persistent fever, you are feeling short of breath when you just get up and walk around, things that you would normally do,” Hall said.

If you have underlying diseases, such as heart and lung disease or diabetes, Hall said that the time frame should be shortened because you are more susceptible to any infection and it becomes more difficult to fight it off.