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Symptoms

By Mayo Clinic staff

Signs and symptoms of mononucleosis may include:

  • Fatigue
  • Weakness
  • Sore throat, perhaps a strep throat that doesn't get better with antibiotics
  • Fever
  • Swollen lymph nodes in your neck and armpits
  • Swollen tonsils
  • Headache
  • Skin rash
  • Loss of appetite
  • Soft, swollen spleen
  • Night sweats

The virus typically has an incubation period of four to eight weeks, although in young children this period is shorter. Signs and symptoms such as fever and sore throat usually lessen within a couple of weeks, although fatigue, enlarged lymph nodes and a swollen spleen may last for a few weeks longer.

When to see your doctor
If you've been experiencing the above symptoms, you may have mononucleosis.

If rest and a healthy diet don't ease your symptoms within a week or two or if your symptoms recur, see your doctor.

DS00352

June 28, 2008

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