(Newser)
The discovery of gastrointestinal symptoms, including loss of taste and diarrhea, appears to be linked to coronavirus outbreaks, according to research from a hospital in Massachusetts. General researchers from Massachusetts say data from 15 states between January 20 and April 20 showed an increase in detection of symptoms in California, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York. Researchers, whose study has been published in the journal Clinical gastroenterology and hepatology, Say, discovered three to four weeks after the local outbreak. The same approach helped track the trend of epidemic influenza a decade ago, researchers say.
“Our data indicate the importance of GI symptoms as a potential harbinger of COVID-19 infection,” said the study’s author, Gastroenterologist Dr. K. Kyle Staller. He tells Yahoo that the study was inspired by the team’s similar research on irritable bowel syndrome. “The data really did show that Google Trends seemed to be able to predict spikes in high-impact areas in some ways.” While there isn’t a silly way to predict a technical outbreak, Staller says, “this could be extra help for public health officials.” He says people with sudden gastroenterological symptoms should be cautious. “It could be a manifestation of Covid-19, which we learned is actually a multisystem disease.” (Read more coronavirus stories.)
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