Typical and Atypical symptoms of COVID-19

Typical and Atypical symptoms of COVID-19

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Corona family: (To remember)

Wuhan Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV)

SARS

MERS

Swine Flu

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1- many people have no symptoms at all.

2- most common distinctive symptoms of COVID-19 are: 

           a dry cough, 

           fever, and 

           difficulty breathing.

3- nausea and diarrhea, abdominal pain  (see this website)

(up to half of patients may have digestive issues along with respiratory symptoms)

4- loss of smell and taste

5- malaise, a general sense of discomfort, illness, or uneasiness

6- disorientation, or exhaustion

7- Chills or muscle aches

8- Headaches and dizziness

(source)

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Clinical manifestations (uptodate)

Initial presentation — Pneumonia appears to be the most frequent serious manifestation of infection, characterized primarily by fever, cough, dyspnea, and bilateral infiltrates on chest imaging. There are no specific clinical features that can yet reliably distinguish COVID-19 from other viral respiratory infections.

In a study describing 138 patients with COVID-19 pneumonia in Wuhan, the most common clinical features at the onset of illness were:
       Fever in 99 percent

Fatigue in 70 percent

Dry cough in 59 percent

Anorexia in 40 percent

Myalgias in 35 percent

Dyspnea in 31 percent

Sputum production in 27 percent

Other cohort studies of patients from Wuhan with confirmed COVID-19 have reported a similar range of clinical findings. However, fever might not be a universal finding. 

In one study, fever was reported in almost all patients, but approximately 20 percent had a very low grade fever <100.4°F/38°C. 

In another study of 1099 patients from Wuhan and other areas in China, fever (defined as an axillary temperature over 99.5°F/37.5°C) was present in only 44 percent on admission but was ultimately noted in 89 percent during the hospitalization .

Although not highlighted in the initial cohort studies from China, smell and taste disorders (eg, anosmia and dysgeusia = is a distortion of the sense of taste) have also been reported as common symptoms in patients with COVID-19. 

In a survey of 59 patients with COVID-19 in Italy, 34 percent self-reported either a smell or taste aberration and 19 percent reported both . Whether this is a distinguishing feature of COVID-19 is uncertain.

Other, less common symptoms have included headache, sore throat, and rhinorrhea. In addition to respiratory symptoms, gastrointestinal symptoms (eg, nausea and diarrhea) have also been reported; and in some patients, they may be the presenting complaint.

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For more details from NCBI