COVID-19 is a newly contagious disease caused by the coronavirus, a deadly acute respiratory syndrome discovered in 2019. Covid-19 first detected the dreaded disease in December 2019 in Wuhan, China. The disease has since spread rapidly, leading to an ongoing epidemic worldwide.
On 11 February 2020, the International Committee on the Taxonomy of the virus announced an official name for the virus, which is “severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2” (SARS-CoV-2). COVID-19 is the short form of ‘coronavirus disease 2019’. In short form COVID-19, ‘CO’ is taken from corona, ‘VI’ is taken from virus, ‘D’ is taken from disease, and 19 is from 2019.
Symptoms of Covid-19 (SARS-CoV-2)
People with Covid-19 can have mild symptoms ranging from mild to severe illness. There are many variants of Covid-19, and its symptoms are variable. Symptoms may appear 2 to 14 days after exposure to the virus or an infected person and may have mild to severe symptoms. People with these symptoms are more likely to have COVID-19:
- Fever or chills
- Dry cough
- difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
- Fatigue
- Loss of smell or taste
- Cold, with occasional shivering
- Rash on skin or discoloration of the fingers or toes.
- Body pain
- Headache and sore throat
- Congestion or runny nose
- Conjunctivitis
- Nausea
- Diarrhea
- Inability to stay awake
Common symptoms of Covid-19: Fever or chills, Dry cough, Fatigue, Loss of smell or taste.
Severe symptoms of Covid-19: “difficulty breathing or shortness of breath,” “Feeling of chest pain or pressure,” “Pain throughout the body, including loss of speech and loss of mobility,” “Inability to stay awake,” “Skin becomes pale, blue-colored, or gray, Lips or nail beds will appear.”
⅓ of people infected with the virus do not have any symptoms at any time. It is difficult to tell if these asymptomatic patients have been infected, so they are not tested and can spread the disease. Other infected people can also spread the disease due to the negligence of those who have few symptoms.
81% of people who develop symptoms of Covid-19 develop only mild to moderate symptoms. The symptoms become severe for 14% of people who have dyspnea, hypoxia. The last 5% of patients with Covid-19 symptoms are in critical condition.
According to Chinese researchers, the most common symptoms among people infected with Covid-19:
- Fever in 99% of patients
- Fatigue in 70% of patients
- Cough 59% of patients
- Lack of appetite in 40% of patients
- Body pain in 35% of patients
- Shortness of breath in 31% of patients
- Mucus/phlegm in 27% of patients
Some people infected with Covid-19 have dangerous blood clots in their legs, lungs, and arteries. Some of the victims also had strokes.
Most people with coronavirus, in general, suffer from mild to moderate respiratory illnesses and recover without special treatment. This can be severe in certain people and patients. These include the elderly, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory disease, and patients with cancer.
What to do if you have symptoms of Covid-19?
If you have a cough and you have a fever, shortness of breath, frequent sneezing, and if you assume that you have symptoms of COVID-19, follow the steps below to take care of yourself and keep other people in your home and community safe:
1. Stay at home
If you think you have symptoms of COVID-19, stay home if it is not too urgent to go out (such as emergency medical), and call a healthcare provider to report your condition. Stay at home even if you have medium/mild symptoms like frequent sneezing, a runny nose, and headache. This allows the doctor to focus on people who are more seriously ill.
Self-quarantine: Take care of yourself, rest, and stay hydrated. Take over-the-counter medications such as acetaminophen, with a doctor’s advice, to help you feel better. If other members of the family are infected, stay in self-quarantine and try to stay in a separate room from other people and use a separate bathroom so that it does not spread in the family.
Emergency: If your symptoms are severe and you feel you need emergency medical care, call a healthcare provider before going directly to the clinic. As a result, they will understand your importance and take all emergency measures and send an ambulance if necessary—call 911 for a medical emergency.
Avoid public places: Avoid public places such as public transport, taxis, ride-sharing, or markets if you experience any mild or severe symptoms.
2. Stay separate from others
Stay in a specific room for up to 14 days as much as possible. Stay away from other people in your home who have not been infected and pets. Be sure to try using a separate bathroom. If you go to someone or someone comes to you, make sure everyone wears a mask and try not to come too close.
A person infected with COVID-19 can spread the infection for up to 48 hours and can spread it until the infected person recovers, and the infection becomes negative. So tell your close acquaintances that you may have come in contact with COVID-19 so that they do not come to your house and you do not try to go to their house. Ask all your acquaintances to take the necessary precautions.