New Delhi: Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is a USA based organization, which provides health considerations and tools for operating during COVID-19.
There are over a million infection cases in India and COVID-19 tally is on the rise globally. While coronavirus attacks the respiratory system, it induces a host of symptoms in patients ranging from flu-like symptoms, immune disorders, muscle pain and aches. A lot remains to be known as to why and how certain symptoms prop up.
However, a small study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the USA surveyed said that they experienced one of the three typical symptoms- fever, cough or shortness of breath. Among these, a whopping 45% said that they experienced all three symptoms together during the course of their illness. While the rest on the list are:
• Fever or chills
• Cough
• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
• Fatigue
• Muscle or body aches
• Headache
• New loss of taste or smell
• Sore throat
• Congestion or runny nose
• Nausea or vomiting
• Diarrhea
Coughing: Coughing was found to be the most common symptom of a rising COVID like illness. While most mild symptoms of COVID-19 start off like a cold or the flu, one symptom which can cause worry is the presence of dry cough (a non-productive cough which doesn’t involve sputum, and is harsher and makes your voice coarse). 80% of those surveyed recorded the presence of a lasting cough as their primary symptom.
Fever: Fever, which was the second most common symptom prevalent in coronavirus patients is also a typical symptom, most likely, a result of inflammation and can show up 2-14 days after exposure to coronavirus. While fever is often resultant of many infections, if you record a temperature of more than 100 degrees for more than 3 days and have other accompanying symptoms, it can be a cause of concern.
Shortness of breath: Shortness of breath, or feeling restless was the third most common symptom the participants recorded. However, according to the findings, the symptom was more likely seen in patients who had to undergo hospitalized for the infection.
Since coronavirus attacks the upper respiratory tract, it targets the immune cells in the nasal tract and often blocks the airways, leading to difficulty of breath. A dip in oxygen levels can also make matters worse and hence, this is one symptom which should never be ignored.
Other findings of the study: Apart from these, the CDC survey echoed the findings of several other reports as to how coronavirus can lead to a variety of symptoms and should not be dismissed as the common flu. From muscle pain, chills, headache, gastrointestinal issues such as abdominal cramps and nausea were also commonly reported. Some, who were not treated or hospitalized also reported feeling a loss of sense of smell or taste as a pertaining symptom.
Interestingly, another recent study done by the UK based King’s College observed that skin rash or infection of any kind could also be a prominent symptom of the infection after 3,36,000 people across the UK were analyzed for a range of symptoms.