Patients are frequently faced with the problem of when or if to go see their physician when they develop simple symptoms of flu cough, fever, muscle ache sore throat. The below list covers the most common symptoms.

Fever above 100 F (38 C), though not everyone with the flu has a fever
A cough or sore throat
A runny or stuffy nose
Headache
Muscle aches
Chills
Fatigue
Nausea, vomiting or diarrhea (most common in children)

The overlap of flu symptoms and simple viral upper respiratory infection are broad and can be difficult to differentiate.

SYMPTOMS

While there are a host of symptoms that point to the need for further evaluation including persistent fevers which are high, symptoms which last for a long period of time, shortness of breath as well as many others, A phone call to your doctor who can access your risk is best, prior to driving to an ED, outpatient urgicenter or scheduling to see your physician..
Much of the assessment of the need to see a physician includes determining your underlying health, chronic health conditions, age and past medical history

RISKS FACTORS

Are younger than 12 months of age
Are 65 years old or older
Are pregnant or have given birth in the past two weeks
Have certain chronic medical conditions, including lung diseases such as asthma, an airway abnormality, heart disease, diabetes, neurological or neurodevelopmental disease, and kidney, liver or blood disease
Have a weakened immune system due to factors such as long-term use of steroids or other immunosuppressants, HIV, organ transplant, blood cancer, or cancer being treated with chemotherapy
Have a body mass index (BMI) of 40 or greater
Live in a long-term care facility such as a nursing home

Going to a crowded waiting room filled with other patients who may have the flu actually may increase your chances of either spreading your condition or contracting the flu from one of those near you. If your waiting room doesn’t distribute masks to those who are actively coughing or sick please ask them to do so and if you are ill you should wear one as well.

My physician frequently screens patients over the phone and treats empirically but another alternative is telemedicine which can allow physicians using technology to listen to heart and lungs and look in your throat

Depending on technology available some telemedicine can include checking of blood pressure and oxygen saturation
Since many of the antiviral drugs used to treat the flu are not effective after two days of the start of symptoms significant intervention to limit symptoms or shorten the disease is not available for most.

The flu typically kills 20,000 to 60,000 people a year in the United States.
The vast majority of these are the elderly or very young and many have comorbid conditions which leave them with little reserve
Consulting with your physician and using telemedicine may be a much better alternative than the knee-jerk reaction to rush to see a caregiver at the earliest symptoms

Being cognizant of the risks of going to your doctor for a self-limited illness is important

Early phone consultation with your doctors office can make you a better and safer consumer

Please remember vaccination especially for those at high risk is the best strategy… prevention rocks!