The least common signs of coronavirus you might not know

THE CORONAVIRUS has been circulating across the UK now for almost a year and most of us know the three main symptoms.

NHS England states if you experience a new persistent cough, a high temperature or a loss of taste or smell then you should get a test and isolate – but there are other signs that you might not know.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) lists aches and pains, sore throat, diarrhoea, conjunctivitis, headache, loss of taste or smell, a rash on skin and discolouration of fingers or toes as less common symptoms of coronavirus.

With new variants of the coronavirus also circulating the government imposed a new lockdown on Brits.

But experts say symptoms of the new variants don’t differ from the ones already in circulation.

As cases of the coronavirus continue to rise, many people are experiencing a wide variety of symptoms and experts also state that children can show different signs.

Data from the Covid Symptom Tracker app revealed that the top symptom in children is fatigue.

Other symptoms in kids include, a headache, fever, sore throat and a loss of appetite.

But there are six common symptoms adults have been suffering that might surprise you.

1. Hearing loss

Experts at the University of Manchester said people who had the virus have reported a deterioration in their hearing as well as conditions such as tinnitus.

According to audiologists at the University of Manchester, people with Covid could also be hit with hearing difficulties.

The study, supported by the NIHR Manchester Biomedical Research Centre (BRC) surveyed 121 adults admitted to Wythenshawe Hospital.

They were questioned over the phone eight weeks after being discharged from hospital.

When asked if they had experienced any changes to their hearing 13.2 per cent said their hearing was worse.

2. Headache

Research by Imperial College London previously found that headaches are a common symptom of the virus.

Experts say 62 per cent of people who experienced any Covid-19 symptoms reported having a sore head.

It is notable that a headache is generally likely to be from stress, emotional distress, migraine or high blood pressure, anxiety or depression.

3. Blood clots

Scientists in the UK previously stated that every patient that has died of the virus has had signs of a blood clot.

While scientists are clear the blood clots aren’t the main cause of death in each case, the findings support previous research that suggests the virus causes vascular issues.

Infectious disease specialist at Imperial College London Professor Graham Cooke looked at data from post-mortems of Covid-19 patients who died.

When blood clots emerged as a complication, blood thinners – designed to stop clots – were also trialled.

Prof Cooke said: “We’ve seen patients who have coronary thrombosis and vascular thrombosis.

“So it does appear to be a very important part of the disease and we see that in terms of activation of the coagulation system.”

4. Skin rashes

Researchers said rashes were twice as common in children as in adults and may be a better predictor of having a swab test than a fever or cough.

According to the data, rashes may appear before, during or after the presence of other Covid symptoms and sometimes many weeks later.

Rashes were also the only sign of infection for 21 per cent of people with a positive nasal swab.

5. Conjunctivitis

Scientists have previously warned that the coronavirus can enter the body through your eyes and that tears could spread the infection.

The results of a study carried out by a team at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore comes after people who had contracted the illness complained of eye irritation and conjunctivitis.

Over the course of the pandemic scientists said various investigators had reported the “presence of the virus in tear and conjunctival swab specimens in a subset of patients with Covid-19“.

In their report the team said there had been limited studies carried out regarding transmission of the virus through the eyes and said through their study they found expression of both ACE2 and TMPRSS2 across all human ocular specimens tested.

They said the virus was particularly prominent in the conjunctiva and cornea.

6. Hair loss

Although hair loss is not one of the common symptoms of coronavirus, some people who have had the virus claim it is a side-effect.

One survivor, who battled the virus in March said she feared she would go bald and be forced to wear a wig after more than half of her hair fell out.

Grace Dudley from Essex said she woke up to clumps of hair on her pillow, while others online also commented that they too had experienced extreme hair loss.

The condition know as telogen effluvium (TE), is when a person temporarily experiences hair loss.

Doctors have said that this usually occurs if a patient has recently experienced a stressful situation. TE occurs when the number of the follices in the scalp changes.

It usually affects the top of the scalp and in most cases the hair line will not recede if someone experiences TE.

Severe cases of TE will spread to the eyebrows and other parts of the body.

How long will symptoms last?

For most people symptoms of the coronavirus last no longer than two weeks.

That’s why is you contract the virus you are advised to isolate for 14 days.

However some people who contract the virus will take longer to recover and in some cases are left with debilitating symptoms.

The condition has been dubbed long Covid and some people have still not fully recovered after contracting the virus in March.

If you think you have the coronavirus you should get a test.

You can do this through the NHS where you can get a test posted to you or you can go to a testing site.

The government states that you should get tested within the first three days of experiencing symptoms.