Some lose their sense of smell, others suffer from body aches, and still others cannot stop coughing … There are many symptoms of coronavirus, and until recently it was not clear on what basis they “choose” patients. But it seems that scientists have found the answer to this question.
According to a study by Chinese scientists conducted during the first wave of the pandemic, men are more likely to get sick and die from coronavirus than women. And regardless of the age of those and others. But recently, scientists from King’s College London found that age does matter – at least in the manifestation of the disease.
From April 20 to October 15, 2020, they analyzed data from the “COVID Symptom Study” application, which was originally created to test and compare symptoms of the disease in twins, but later became available to the general public.
In it, users indicated personal information – age, gender, location, the presence of chronic diseases – and described their well-being. And also clarified whether they were diagnosed with coronavirus or not.
The app analyzed the data to determine if the reported symptoms were consistent with the virus, or if they were manifestations of other seasonal illnesses. And many of the users were taking tests at the same time. As a result, the researchers were able to “predict” 80% of infections – and only by the symptoms that appeared in people in the first days.
After that, scientists using modern diagnostic techniques found that symptoms can be grouped by age and gender of patients. In total, 18 symptoms were studied, of which the most indicative of the early stage of the disease were: loss of smell, chest pain, persistent cough, abdominal pain, soreness in the eyes and muscle pain.
But how do they relate to the age of patients?
- From 16 to 39 years – most often people experienced loss of smell, pain in the chest and abdomen, shortness of breath and soreness in the eyes;
- From 40 to 59 years – a constant cough usually helped to identify the disease. But chills were most often not peculiar;
- Between 60 and 79 years of age, muscle pain, shortness of breath, and loss of smell were much less common. The key early symptom is diarrhea;
- Over 80 years old – patients almost never experienced a loss of smell, but more than others suffered from chills.
As for the separation of symptoms according to gender, there are some peculiarities here. Thus, men were more likely to report shortness of breath, fatigue and chills, while women noted loss of smell, chest pain and persistent cough.
This study, published in The Lancet, is of great importance, as its results allow us to determine the nature of the disease in the first three days of its development. And to convince people to get tested without waiting for other symptoms.
“We were able to determine that the profile of symptoms caused by COVID-19 differs between groups. This suggests that the criteria that encourage people to get tested should be personalized using personal information, such as age,” said Mark Modat, a doctor at King’s College London.
It is worth noting that the study was conducted when most people were exposed to the first known strains of coronavirus, and now the Delta strain is most often detected in patients. Although it can be assumed that in his case, the symptoms will differ depending on the age and gender of the person, but how exactly is unknown.
Moreover, recently scientists have started talking about the approach of a new, more dangerous strain – Lambda, which is most common in Latin America, but is already present in 30 countries. According to experts, it is even more resistant to antibodies, and can also spread faster. But there is no unequivocal assessment of its danger yet.