In January 2020, a person who would turn into referred to as the primary documented COVID-19 affected person in the USA arrived at an pressing care clinic.
Two of his signs, a cough and a fever, have been amongst people who would turn into referred to as the telltale signs of COVID. However the affected person had additionally skilled two days of nausea and vomiting.
Many people affiliate COVID with respiratory points. However some individuals who get sick with the virus by no means expertise a sore throat, coughing or physique aches, mentioned Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious illness specialist on the College of California, San Francisco. Sure individuals find yourself feeling extra like they’ve meals poisoning than the rest.
That’s as a result of coronavirus is “like throwing a bomb in your physique,” mentioned Ken Cadwell, a professor of medication on the College of Pennsylvania who research how COVID impacts the intestine. “You’re going to really feel that in a number of completely different organs, not simply the lungs.”
With COVID circumstances climbing, and the so-called “FLiRT” variants fueling one more summer season unfold, right here’s the right way to spot, and tackle, the lesser-known gastrointestinal signs.
Recognizing and Resolving Abdomen Signs
In some individuals, gastrointestinal signs hit in the course of the first few days of an an infection, earlier than they develop a fever and cough. However many individuals who solely expertise abdomen signs “by no means consider it as COVID,” Chin-Hong mentioned.
Diarrhea is a standard COVID-related gastrointestinal symptom, Chin-Hong mentioned. Individuals also can lose their urge for food, and expertise nausea, belly ache and vomiting.
COVID doesn’t look the identical each time you get contaminated, mentioned Dr. Davey Smith, an infectious illness specialist on the College of California, San Diego. You might need chilly and flu signs throughout one bout of the virus, and gastrointestinal signs the subsequent time. Paxlovid, an antiviral remedy that reduces the danger of extreme illness, also can trigger diarrhea.
Hydration is necessary for anybody with COVID, however ingesting sufficient fluids is crucial for those who expertise diarrhea or vomiting. In case you’re struggling to carry meals down, stick to dull meals like toast and bananas, mentioned Dr. Adrienna Jirik, a gastroenterologist at Cleveland Clinic.
Those that share a rest room can take steps to keep away from contaminating the world with the viral particles in your waste, like opening a window to enhance air flow.
A Refresher on Different COVID Signs
The commonest variants at present circulating seem to trigger the identical signs we’ve seen in different latest strains of the virus.
Along with digestive discomfort, individuals generally develop a sore throat, congestion or a runny nostril, head and muscle aches, fever or chills, a cough and fatigue. In extreme circumstances, they will battle to breathe. Whereas some individuals who get sick lose their sense of style or odor, that symptom is way much less frequent now than it was earlier within the pandemic.
Any of those signs can hit days after spending time with somebody who has the virus. If you recognize you’ve been uncovered, it’s necessary to maintain a watch out for all of the signs, together with gastrointestinal ones, Chin-Hong mentioned.
“If everyone in your own home has COVID and you’ve got diarrhea, then it’s important to put two and two collectively,” he mentioned.