Am I infected too?
Many are asking themselves these days: Have I been infected with the corona virus?
Here are the symptoms of lung disease.
The lung disease Covid-19 worries people around the world.
In total, over 44,580,000 Covid-19 cases have been reported worldwide to date.
The World Health Organization (WHO) declared Covid-19 a pandemic at the beginning of 2020.
The coronavirus * is responsible for the outbreak of the disease, and according to researchers it can spread extremely quickly.
Update from October 29th, 2020: This symptom is typical for Covid-19
In many cases, the flu, cold and Covid-19 have similar symptoms.
But there is one criterion that most likely indicates Corona.
Researchers at University College London found in a study that a symptom of other illnesses such as the common cold and flu is rather unusual:
the loss of the sense of smell and taste
.
78 percent of the study participants who complained about a loss of sense of smell or taste carried corona antibodies.
At the same time, 40 percent of people who were infected with the coronavirus and had lost their sense of taste or smell said they had neither a cough nor a fever.
Update from July 15, 2020: New study proves brain damage from coronaviruses
New studies are constantly providing new insights into how a coronavirus infection affects the body.
Chinese researchers had already shown in a study that Covid-19 can have a negative effect on brain function, Norwegian researchers even speak of the "Covid-19 brain".
Now a Regensburg study confirms that a coronavirus infection attacks the brain.
A press release from the Barmherzige Brüder Hospital in Regensburg shows that Covid-19 can result in symptoms such as headache, confusion, disorientation, loss of sense of smell, anxiety and even delusions.
"We only examined patients with mild to moderate disease courses who showed no or only minor neurological impairments", explains Professor Sven Wellmann, chief physician for neonatology at the KUNO Klinik St. Hedwig and professor at the chair for pediatric and adolescent medicine at the University of Regensburg: "And here, too, we found that Covid-19 not only attacks the lungs, but also causes neurological damage".
After the illness has subsided, the symptoms usually disappear again,
but it is not yet known what long-term neurological damage could result from an illness with the coronavirus.
Update from May 18, 2020: Intestinal damage and biliary sludge from infection with coronaviruses
New consequences and symptoms of a Covid 19 infection are becoming known.
In mid-May, US researchers published a study examining the effects of the virus disease on the gastrointestinal tract.
The fact that Covid-19 affects digestion is not new: Many patients complain of digestive problems *, including diarrhea.
In the laboratory there is often evidence of liver damage from Covid-19, as the Ärzteblatt reported.
One of the striking results of the study by the doctors led by study director Rajesh Bhayana from Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston: A severe infection with SARS-CoV-2 can lead to
intestinal damage and even necrosis of intestinal loops - i.e. tissue death
.
In 13 of 412 patients with Covid-19 (3.2 percent), the doctors found a thickening of the intestinal walls in their study, in four patients gas formation was also discovered in the intestinal wall, in two patients the surgeons removed necrotic intestinal loops.
In addition, the doctors diagnosed an enlarged gall bladder with so-called biliary sludge in 20 patients
.
A coronavirus-infected intestinal mucosa or a virus-related thrombosis of the small blood vessels is discussed as the cause, as reported by the Ärzteblatt.
To the study
Update from May 13th, 2020: swellings, blisters and itchy wheals on the upper body
Spanish researchers come to the conclusion in a study that a coronavirus infection can cause various skin changes.
The study by the Hospital Universitario de Móstoles in Madrid and the Hospital Plató in Barcelona, published in the British Journal of Dermatology, includes data from 375 Spanish Covid-19 patients.
Chilblains-like skin changes on the hands and feet were found in 19 percent of the patients
.
These were accompanied by swelling and blistering, as the researchers reported.
A third of those affected in the Spanish study found the skin changes painful or itchy, as the Focus reported.
But not only the feet and hands, other parts of the body can also be affected by skin changes with Covid-19.
The Spanish doctors observed
hives
*
- so-called urticarial lesions - in 19 percent of the patients.
The torso, i.e. the back and abdomen, were particularly often affected.
Itchy wheals and reddened skin on the affected areas characterize the pathological skin changes.
To the study
Also read
: Coronavirus infection more dangerous for men: Doctors observe increased levels of this enzyme
.
Update from April 24th, 2020: Rash and dark spots on the feet - new coronavirus symptom detected
Medical professionals around the world discovered a new mysterious symptom of coronavirus infection:
some patients developed bruises and itchy rashes on their toes - and sometimes their fingers
.
These signs would have occurred especially in children and adolescents in the early phase of the disease *, as the picture reported.
The International Association of Pediatricians published a case report of a 13-year-old boy from Italy who contracted Covid-19 on its website.
The dark skin changes on the toes initially puzzled the doctors.
But a connection to the coronavirus infection was quickly established, also because other scientists published similar observations.
Scientists also reported a comparable case from Thailand in the dermatologist journal JAAD.
An Italian study, which is quoted by the picture, even comes to the result that around one in five Covid-19 patient treated in hospital shows skin changes on the toes
.
The skin lesions would be similar to those that characterize chickenpox or measles.
A comparison with chilblains is also mentioned.
The dark spots can be accompanied by an itchy rash, and in some cases, crusted over.
So far, doctors have not been able to conclusively determine why the skin changes occur.
The
coronavirus
is also said to trigger pulmonary embolism in many patients *, as the Swiss doctor Nils Kucher warns
.
Update from April 20, 2020: Researchers from Wuhan prove damage to the nervous system of Covid 19 patients
The coronavirus not only affects the lungs, bronchi and other organs in the respiratory tract, but also affects the nervous system: Chinese researchers have come to this conclusion.
Neurologist Ling Mao from Tongji Medical College at Huazhong University of Science and Technology and his team examined 214 coronavirus patients to determine whether the viral infection also affected the nervous system.
And indeed, the doctors observed neurological complaints that increased with the severity of the coronavirus infection
.
36 patients suffered from dizziness, 28 infected people suffered from headaches, twelve people noticed taste disorders and eleven patients could no longer smell as good as before due to Covid-19
.
Six Covid 19 patients (2.8 percent) suffered a stroke *.
The loss of smell and taste that many patients reported prior to the study already suggested that the brain may be involved in a coronavirus infection.
But there are still few research results in this area: "So far, there have only been very few studies on the brains of corona patients. We're still in the dark."
quotes the Focus infectiologist Bernd Salzberger from the University Hospital Regensburg.
To the study
Update from April 10th, 2020: Coronaviruses active in the air for up to three hours
A new study published in The New England Journal of Medicine concludes that coronaviruses can be transmitted to others through the air they breathe.
US scientists came to the conclusion that coronaviruses are not only transmitted by large droplets, such as those produced by coughing and sneezing: They also get into the air via the fine mist that every person expels when they exhale.
There they can be infectious for up to three days
, according to the results of the US researchers.
To the study
You might also be interested in
: Coronavirus infection on the bike?
That is really how great the danger is - the specialist demands more distance
.
Update from March 31, 2020: New coronavirus symptom discovered
According to the British portal Mirror, doctors in New York are said to have discovered another symptom in a coronavirus patient.
Sick people usually feel dull, have a cough and fever, some have aching limbs, diarrhea, runny nose or headache.
Doctors now observed
heart attack
* -like signs in
the patient in a hospital in Brooklyn, New York
.
The patient suffered
cardiac arrhythmias
and the doctors also found a high
proportion of the protein troponin
in his blood
- two characteristic signs of a heart attack.
However, tests showed that the man did not have a heart attack, but instead was infected with the coronavirus.
The patient recovered after twelve days of hospitalization.
To the New York Times, Dr.
John Rumsefeld, Chief Science and Quality Officer at the American College of Cardiology: "We thought of the lungs (...). Then we suddenly heard of possible direct effects on the heart."
The case occurred shortly after a study by researchers at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston.
The study found that the coronavirus can cause heart damage even in patients with no underlying heart disease.
Dr.
Mohammad Madjid, who led the study, said, "It is likely that the
heart muscle can be affected by coronavirus disease even without prior heart disease
. Overall, heart muscle injury can occur in any patient with or without heart disease, but the risk is higher for those who already have heart disease. "
Also read
:
Do you have high blood pressure?
You should definitely heed this advice
.
Update from March 28th, 2020: Permanent damage after coronavirus infection
According to virologist Christian Drosten, there are now indications that patients who
suffered from
Covid-19 disease can
suffer permanent damage *.
Many patients, and especially those with more severe courses, are still weakened more than a month after being discharged from the hospital, according to Drosten on the NDR podcast.
"And lung function doesn't seem to be good either, after surviving severe infection."
Covid-19: Up to three days before the first symptoms, there is already a risk of infection from coronaviruses
Update from March 27th, 2020:
A study by scientists led by Gabriel Leung from the WHO Center for the Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases indicates that people
could be contagious two to three days before the first signs of disease appear
.
The researchers presented their results on the "MedRxiv" preprint server, an online archive for previously unpublished research articles from medicine.
After investigations on 94 Covid-19 patients and 77 cases of transmission of the Sars-CoV-2 pathogen, the researchers come to the conclusion that 44 percent of the transmissions could take place before the first symptoms of the disease.
The scientists found the highest viral load in throat swabs at the time when the symptoms started.
The authors are therefore of the opinion that
the risk of infection is highest on the day on which the first symptoms appear, or even two to three days before
.
The
incubation period
, ie the time between infection and outbreak of the disease, is, according to the RKI
on average five to six days
.
The range, however, is one to 14 days.
In addition, a study with nine people found that
viruses capable of replicating can be found in the throat up to four days after the onset of symptoms
- in sputum even up to the eighth day afterwards.
Overall, around
80 percent of the illnesses would be "mild to moderate"
, 14 percent severe and six percent critical.
More on the topic
: Coronavirus: Smokers special risk group - regardless of age, at great risk.
Update from March 19, 2020: Virologist discovers new signs of infection
In an interview with the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Hendrik Streeck, a specialist in virology and infection epidemiology, described novel symptoms that he had observed in Covid 19 patients: "
Almost all infected people that we asked, and that applies to a good two thirds, described one Loss of smell and taste lasting several days
. This goes so far that a mother could not smell a full diaper of her child ".
Streeck is director of the Institute for Virology and HIV Research at the Medical Faculty of the University of Bonn.
He asked more than 100 people infected with Sars-CoV-2 in the hospital about their symptoms.
Loss of smell and taste is more likely to occur in the later stages of coronavirus infection, Streeck said.
Article from January 20, 2020: The following symptoms speak for Covid-19
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the new lung disease is called Covid-19
.
The pathogen, a special coronavirus, got its own name: Sars-CoV-2.
The consequences of an infection can be drastic: There have already been 318,596 deaths worldwide.
According to the Coronavirus Resource Center at Johns Hopkins University, 176,551 people in Germany have contracted the coronavirus *.
8,041 deaths are currently reported nationwide.
155,041 people are considered healthy again.
(As of: May 19, 2020)
Coronavirus: the symptoms at a glance
The virus is not only spreading in China, but also in other countries such as Thailand, the USA or South Korea and the number of patients is also increasing in Germany *.
It is reasonable to assume that a large proportion of the sick contracted the virus at an animal market in Wuhan.
However, some infected people had not visited the market,
which is why Imperial College London warned against considering the virus as non-communicable - which should turn out to be a correct assessment.
Coronavirus news ticker: the
number of infected people increases dramatically - EU authority with gloomy forecast
It has now been proven that the virus can be transmitted from person to person.
The World Health Organization (WHO) therefore advises avoiding contact with sick people and visiting risk areas.
These include Italy, Iran, the Spanish city of Madrid, the state of Tyrol in Austria, the US states of California as well as New York and the province of Hubei in China - and also Germany.
The WHO has declared the coronavirus epidemic an international health emergency and has classified the new disease as a pandemic since March 11, 2020 - an epidemic that spreads across countries.
The following symptoms can indicate a coronavirus infection:
fever
Dry cough and sputum (sputum)
Exhaustion
Breathing problems such as shortness of breath
Chewing and temporomandibular joint pain
a headache
Sore throat
chills
Nausea / vomiting
stuffy nose
diarrhea
If the course is severe, an infection with Sars-CoV-2 can lead to
pneumonia
.
+
Coughing is also a major symptom of coronavirus infection.
© picture alliance / dpa
According to the World Health Organization,
fever and dry cough are
the most common symptoms of Sars-CoV-2 infection.
Exhaustion and coughing up phlegm come before shortness of breath, headache and sore throat:
Also read:
Dr.
Sabine Kurz, a doctor in a group practice in Aying near Munich, is infected with the corona virus *.
The practice was closed.
An interview with the infected.
Symptoms: Strong similarity between Corona and Sars Virus
According to the editorial network Germany,
virus researcher Christian Drosten found a close connection between the currently spreading coronavirus and Sars
, the severe acute respiratory syndrome.
The infectious disease manifests itself in the form of atypical pneumonia *, which can be fatal.
Like the Sars virus, the coronavirus is transmitted by
droplet infection
*, which is why coughing and sneezing patients pose a high risk of infection.
According to the Robert Koch Institute, the incubation period (time between infection and onset of the disease) should be up to 14 days.
You might also be interested in:
Because of the corona virus, Munich Airport has now also taken drastic measures and canceled thousands of flights.
Some countries are particularly affected.
Treacherous Coronavirus Infection With No Cure - How To Protect Yourself
Since the novel virus type has not yet been fully researched, there is still no uniform treatment recommendation.
Due to the similarity to the Sars virus, however, it is likely that with a coronavirus infection * as with Sars, only the side effects can be alleviated.
Medicines that render the virus harmless do not (yet) exist, and there is also no vaccination *
.
Thai doctors, however, have achieved great success in symptomatic treatment *.
The
prevention
is extremely important to avoid contagion.
Doctors recommend *:
Avoid crowds of people and, in the current situation, generally avoid contact with people.
Above all, avoid contact with sick people.
Wash your hands often *.
Sick people should wear a face mask *.
Sources
:
www.tagesschau.de
;
www.swr3.de
;
www.rnd.de
;
www.bundesgesundheitsministerium.de;
www.lungenaerzte-im-netz.de;
www.rki.de;
www.experience.arcgis.com;
www.rki.de/Steckbrief;
https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html;
www.faz.de
More on the topic
: This is how Munich Airport is preparing.
Also because of the many unknown variables, a number of conspiracy theories about the coronavirus are now spreading primarily on the Internet.
You can find an overview here.
Good news from Australia: Researchers have made a "major breakthrough".
In the USA, researchers have now developed a mobile test device that can be docked on smartphones and diagnose infectious diseases.
On Monday (March 2), BMW informed its employees in Munich about a first confirmed coronavirus case.
Those affected feel overloaded and poorly cared for.
Nobody feels really responsible * and one is only referred from hotline to hotline.
Also read:
The corona virus has also reached the Upper Bavarian district of Freising.
There are now over 50 infected people.
All information here in the coronavirus ticker.
The coronavirus is also spreading in Lower Saxony *: Events are being canceled and the state is working on setting up regional test centers.
jg
These viruses and bacteria make us sick
These viruses and bacteria make us sick
* Merkur.de and hna.de belong to the Germany-wide Ippen-Digital editorial network
List of rubric lists: © picture alliance / dpa / Oliver Killig
