The United States’ top public health body has added six new symptoms to its list of possible signs of Covid-19 infection. Chills, repeated shaking with chills, muscle pain, headache, sore throat and new loss of taste or smell are the six new symptoms added by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The United States has so far reported 9.65 lakh Covid-19 cases and 54,877 deaths, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker. Globally, till Monday afternoon, more than 29.8 lakh cases were recorded. Over 2.06 lakh people have died.
The health agency had earlier said that fever, cough and shortness of breath were symptoms of the deadly virus. The CDC had later changed shortness of breath to “shortness of breath or difficulty breathing”.
“People with Covid-19 have had a wide range of symptoms reported, ranging from mild symptoms to severe illnesses,” the CDC said in a statement. “These symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus.” The health body also laid out a set of emergency warning signs for Covid-19 that require immediate medical attention, but said the list was not all inclusive. These included persistent pain or pressure in the chest, trouble breathing, new confusion or inability to arouse, bluish lips or face.
The health organisation clarified that a runny nose rarely occurred with Covid-19 and sneezing was not yet a symptom, the Hindustan Times reported.
The World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had initially listed fever, dry cough and breathing difficulties as signs linked to the disease. But people then began to report a loss in their senses of taste and smell. Some also reported diarrhoea, or purple or blue lesions on their feet and toes. These lesions were often seen on either children or young adults and known as “Covid toes”.
While some doctors have reported that the virus may trigger strokes in those between the age group of 30-40, doctors at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York detected signs of blood thickening and clotting in different organs of Covid-19 patients.
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