
FOUR UNUSUAL COVID-19 symptoms doctors are seeing today
1. Kawasaki Disease
Doctors have reported Kawasaki disease-like symptoms in children.
The first known case of Kawasaki disease connected to COVID-19 was reported in April from Stanford, California in a 6-month-old infant. The baby tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, after presenting with high-grade fever, a rash, and some mild respiratory illness.
2. Anosmia
Early on, there were several reports which stated that many individuals who had been diagnosed with COVID-19 had first noticed a loss of the sense of smell, or anosmia. According to doctors from ENT UK at The Royal College of Surgeons of England, a significant number of individuals who tested positive for the disease had a history of having had anosmia. Furthermore, there has been immense supporting evidence studied in infected individuals in South Korea, China, Italy, and Germany that several people developed anosmia before falling ill.
In Germany 2 out of every 3 people confirmed to have COVID-19, were reported to have lost the ability to smell. In South Korea, where testing measures have largely been implemented, 30 percent of people testing positive were reported to have anosmia.
3. Blood Clotting and ‘COVID Toes’
Initially, doctors noticed that people developed a condition in their toes, which soon became dubbed ‘COVID toes.’ Those who had this condition tested positive for the virus and also had a peculiar symptom of red or purple lesions in their toes. Dermatologists have termed this condition ‘pernio-like.’ Pernio is a condition in which people develop tender bumps, which can be red or purple in color on their extremities (specifically on their hands and toes).
While there is no confirmed pathogenesis for this finding, some experts speculate it may be related to blood clotting-related issues in those with the disease.
4. Happy Hypoxia
Normal blood saturation levels are deemed to be 95 percent and above. In people who have been diagnosed with COVID-19 doctors found that several of them had low blood oxygen levels. Scores of individuals who had contracted SARS-CoV-2 were found to have extremely low levels of blood oxygen saturation, which under other circumstances would have caused significant risks.
The medical term for this sign is ‘silent hypoxia’ in which an individual isn’t aware that the body tissues are not getting an appropriate amount of oxygen for regular functions. According to several experts, these individuals usually have had symptoms for anywhere from 2 to 10 days before they even begin to develop respiratory-related complaints such as chest pain, difficulty breathing, and tightening of the chest for example.
As the blood oxygen levels slowly decrease, the body is not aware that it is being deprived of oxygen, which is why it can take some time for the symptoms to set-in.
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