COVID-19 symptoms tend to appear in a specific order, according to a new study.
Researchers from the University of Southern California have released a new study, published in the journal Frontier Public Health, which outlined the common order in which coronavirus symptoms appear.
While the core symptoms of coronavirus are cough, shortness of breath, and fever, the order in which they appear may help with earlier detection and possibly help patients to treat more quickly. The study found that fever occurs first, followed by cough and muscle aches. Other symptoms such as nausea and vomiting follow, followed by diarrhea.
“This sequence is especially important to know when we have overlapping cycles of diseases such as the flu that coincide with COVID-19 infections,” USC professor Peter Kuhn said in a press release. “Physicians can determine what steps to take to care for the patient, and they can prevent the patient’s condition from deteriorating.”
Researchers have investigated more than 55,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus in China using data compiled by the World Health Organization. They also looked at nearly 2,500 cases spread around the world, where they reported investigated symptoms for flu from 1994 to 1998.
Joseph Larsen, one of the study’s authors, said the study’s findings are important.
‘The order of the symptoms matters. “If you know that each disease progresses differently, doctors can identify earlier if someone is likely to have COVID-19, or another disease, which can help them make better treatment decisions,” Larsen said.
