Since Covid-19 was a new disease and information on symptoms was limited, especially among patients who had not been hospitalized, the CDC sent an additional survey to patients identified by local health leaders. Patients were asked to report a wide variety of symptoms and also any additional symptoms that were not widely recognized.
Among these patients, almost all, 96%, had had fever, cough, or shortness of breath, and about 45% experienced all three.
Cough was the most common symptom: 84% of patients surveyed said they had a cough, the CDC team and state health officials found. Fever was the next most common symptom, and 80% of patients reported having a fever. Difficulty breathing was most commonly associated with people who were hospitalized.
Patients also experienced a wide variety of other symptoms, including muscle pain, chills, fatigue, and headache. At least one stomach problem, most commonly diarrhea, was reported by half of the patients. Some patients also reported gastrointestinal symptoms such as abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting.
A higher percentage of people who did not have to go to the hospital lost their sense of taste or smell.
These results are not generalizable, as testing was restricted to certain patients during this time period and hospitalized patients are likely over-represented in the sample of respondents, but the data gives doctors a better idea of who might need to be examined or even isolated. slow down the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.
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