What started in a small town in China has engulfed the whole world in its tentacles. Covid-19 or Coronavirus pandemic as the world knows it has released a wave of terror all across the planet. The world is now facing one of the worst pandemics of recent times. The United States is one of the top suffering nations from Covid-19. With confirmed COVID-19 cases in the US consistently increasing, It’s normal to be concerned. Words like a face mask and social distancing have become part of our daily routine. The CDC and World Health organization are constantly working to curb and control this pandemic and prevent the spread. Health care and medical care across the globe are facing much pressure.
So how does one know that he or she might be suffering from this pandemic, what are the possible common symptoms of this disease? These are some genuine questions. With so much misinformation going around regarding this, people are getting confused in deciding what is correct and what is fake. So here we bring to you the eight symptoms of COVID-19 that can help you decide on getting a check done for coronavirus. Prevention and social distancing is the most successful defense mechanism against this modern catastrophe.
Eight Symptoms that may mean that you have COVID-19
The best prevention for this disease is being alert and active. If you identify the symptoms that Covid-19 portrays early on, then you can save your loved ones and other people by avoiding the spread. Although the most common symptom of Covid-19 is fever cough, sore throat, and in extreme cases shortness of breath and difficulty breathing, there are other symptoms that can point to coronavirus infection.
- Fever: Fever is the most common indicator of Covid-19 but it too varies from person to person, as the core temperature can be higher and lower than the standard 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit or 37°c. So the fixation on this number should be avoided. Most adults and children cannot be stated to have a fever until their temperature reaches or crosses 100°F. There is a lot of misconception going on around fever, if you have a temperature of 99°F or 99.5°F it should not be considered as a fever.
According to Dr. William Schaffner of Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, who is an expert in infectious disease, and professor of infectious disease and preventive medicine, we should not depend on our morning temperatures. Instead, he says we should take our temperatures in the early evenings or late afternoon.
The reason for this is that our body temperature is not the same all day. The evenings and early evening is the time when the temperature is the highest. It is the common modus operandi of the virus to produce fever.
- Dry Cough: Another common symptom of Covid-19 is coughing. It is not a normal cough. The COVID-19 cough would not be like a tickle in the throat, it is just not the general clearing of the throat. The Corona virus-infected cough would be troublesome. It would be a dry cough that you can feel deep inside your chest.
It comes straight from the sternum or breastbone, and you can actually feel your bronchia tubes being irritated and inflamed. According to the reports from WHO in February alone out of nearly 56,000 people tested, nearly 33% who had coronavirus had a cough, and sputum was found in their cough.
- Body aches and chills: The person who has Covid-19 has body pains and chills. These occur more at night. The person also suffers rigorous shivering, so severe that some even chip their teeth. But studies also state that some people may not feel the chills or pains at all. While some may feel only slight mild fatigue or flu-like chills and aching muscles and joints.
This difference in patterns and irregular symptoms makes it really hard to determine whether it is a regular flu or the dreaded Covid-19. One indicator that it is a coronavirus and not the normal flu is that even after 7 days your condition would not improve, it would in fact worsen.
- Shortness of breath: This is not an early symptom of Covid-19 but it surely is the most dangerous of all symptoms. The creepy thing about this symptom is that it can occur without you even having a cough. If you ever feel that you cannot breathe or your chest becomes tight or you are struggling to put air in your lungs, then you should seek immediate medical help. If the shortness of breath is constant then you should immediately call 911.
According to the data by the CDC (center for disease control), the emergency signs of coronavirus are consistent pressure and pain in the chest and bluish face or lips. These are the indication of lack of oxygen to the lungs, immediate medical attention should be provided to the patients suffering from these signs.
- Digestive problems: When the first coronavirus came which was also known as SARS or CoV-2, problems related to gastric or stomach like diarrhea that came with the flu were related to it. But with Covid-19 that notion has changed. In studies conducted on nearly 200 patients suffering from Covid-19, it was found that nearly 50% of them had some or none of the other gastrointestinal problems.
So we now know that in many initial or milder cases of the coronavirus pandemic the digestive issues like diarrhea without fever can be taken as an early symptom of Cocvid-19.
- Pink Eye: Various studies from South Korea and China show us that about 1-3% of people who suffer from Covid-19 also happen to suffer from pink eye or conjunctivitis. When caused by the virus conjunctivitis or pink eye can be very dangerous. In this, the thin transparent layer of the eye tissue gets inflated. This layer is known as the conjunctiva, it covers the part of the eye that is white inside of the eyelid.
So if you have a fever, cold, sore throat combined with pink eye then, you should immediately get your tests done for Covid-19.
- Loss of taste and smell: Recent trends are showing that in milder cases and even in moderate Covid-19 cases, loss of taste and smell is becoming the prominent early signs of coronavirus. In South Korea, it was seen that in 30% of the patients suffering from Covid-19 the loss of taste was one of the major symptoms. In Germany for instance the ratio of people who reported having lost taste and smell was nearly 2/3.
If you are having a loss of smell or taste you can do a little jelly bean test to be doubly sure. If you can identify specific and prominent smells like lemons and oranges, then you don’t have to worry your senses are working fine.
- Headache, sore throat, fatigue, and congestion: Fatigue can be one of the early signs of Covid-19. According to official data of WHO out of 6,000 people, nearly 40% felt fatigued. Headache and sore throat are some common symptoms that people have been having forever, but the new report from WHO also states that almost 15% of the people had sore throat and headache. As a matter of the fact, this disease looks very similar to the cold and flu. So it is really difficult to decide whether it due to normal flu or Covid-19. If the sore throat, headache, and congestion do not go away after 7 days or more, then you should get yourself checked.
COVID -19 is the reality of our times. The whole globe is being devastated by this pandemic, which was started in Wuhan. With each passing day, the cases and deaths are increasing. The only refuge we have against this monster is that we should protect ourselves and our loved ones against this dreaded disease. We must be very careful about even mild symptoms that we develop. It is a highly infectious disease.
So we must make sure that we cover our nose and mouth properly, maintain social distancing, avoid crowded places, and listen to the advice released by the CDC. Whenever you develop any of the symptoms or a combination of these 8 systems shown in the article, isolate yourself for 14 days, take the Covid-19 test, and proper medication.
