Six new possible coronavirus symptoms added to official US list
UNTIL now, a dry cough and fever have been the only officially recognised symptoms of coronavirus by most health bodies.
However, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has now added six new symptoms to its list of possible signs of Covid-19 to help people when it comes to spotting the deadly disease.
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The organisation says: “People with Covid-19 have had a wide range of symptoms reported — ranging from mild symptoms to severe illness.”
They have now updated their list of official signs to include: chills, repeated shaking with chills, muscle pain, headache, sore throat and new loss of taste or smell.
Shortness of breath has also been changed to “shortness of breath or difficulty breathing.”
This means the CDC’s full list of symptoms is now:
- Fever
- Cough
- Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
- Chills
- Repeated shaking with chills
- Muscle pain
- Headache
- Sore throat
- New loss of taste or smell
The CDC say that any of these nine symptoms may appear anywhere from 2-14 days after exposure to the virus.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the most common symptoms of Covid-19 are fever, dry cough, and tiredness.
“Some patients may have aches and pains, nasal congestion, sore throat or diarrhoea,” reads the .
“These symptoms are usually mild and begin gradually. Some people become infected but only have very mild symptoms.”
Asymptomatic transmission
Some people will not develop all of these symptoms – and some might not even show symptoms at all, experts say.
Sir Patrick Vallance, the UK’s chief scientific adviser, said: “It looks quite likely that there is some degree of asymptomatic transmission.
“There’s definitely quite a lot of transmission very early in the disease when there are very mild symptoms.”
Around one out of every six who gets Covid-19 become seriously ill and develops difficulty breathing, according to the WHO.
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Older people, and those with underlying medical problems like high blood pressure, heart problems or diabetes, are at most risk developing serious illness.
This can include pneumonia and swelling in the lungs, which can make it hard for the lungs to pass oxygen into the bloodstream – leading to organ failure and death.
Severe pneumonia can kill people by causing them to “drown” in the fluid flooding their lungs.
You should only call NHS 111 – the coronavirus number – if you cannot cope with your symptoms at home, your condition gets worse or you do not recover within seven days.
If you get a cough, a high temperature, or you feel short of breath, you can .
Seek advice
Do not leave your house without getting advice from a doctor.
You should call 999 immediately if you think you or someone you know have the symptoms of severe or critical Covid-19.
Make sure you tell the call handler that you think you have coronavirus or coronavirus symptoms.
The best way to prevent catching any form of coronavirus is to practice good hygiene, health experts say.
Currently, there is no vaccine to protect people against the virus.
Antibiotics do not help, as they do not work against viruses – only bacteria.
The NHS says that treatment aims to relieve the symptoms while your body fights the illness.
Those who are infected will need to stay in isolation away from other people until they have recovered.
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Currently, there are also no testing kits available for general home use.
At the moment, the only way to be tested for coronavirus is at hospital.
But to qualify for testing in hospital you will need to be showing at least two symptoms of coronavirus and be in a relatively severe stage before being admitted.
