# Symptoms of COVID-19 **URL:** \ **Category:** The Quarantine Zone\ **Tags:** covid-quarantine\ **Created:** [March 13, 2020, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symptoms-of-covid-19/849403 "2020-03-13T12:30:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2020, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symptoms-of-covid-19/849403/1 "2020-03-13T12:30:02Z")
Does anyone have links to decent information as to the types and severity of symptoms people can expect if infected w/ COVID-19? My understanding is that some large percentage of people who are infected are largely asymptomatic, or only exhibit mild symptoms. Another large percentage experience a temperature and cough - which I’ve heard described as a “bad cold.” Then a very small percentage - mostly in vulnerable populations, experience more severe symptoms and possibly death. I’m not trying to downplay the seriousness of this, but the near panic I perceive by some seems to greatly exceed their personal risk. And, of course, a reasonable person would take reasonable steps to reduce their chance of infection. My assumption is that this thing is out there such that it is going to spread through the population - the only question is how quickly. But among the huge volume of “news” I’ve seen little clear info describing specific symptoms and percentages. I admit that the news has been so vast, that I have been skimming major arts of it. Sorry to add to the huge # of existing COVID threads. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2020, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symptoms-of-covid-19/849403/2 "2020-03-13T12:58:28Z")
I’ve been in recent meetings with public health experts who have been asked similar questions (though not exactly the same). Other than the vague guideline that you’re aware of – for young, healthy populations the **personal** risk is less, and for old, unhealthy people it can be a death sentence – the lack of widespread testing is inhibiting a better understanding of how many people have the virus but are asymptomatic. However, the frame of the question is something that the experts I heard from would take issue with. The problem here is that people are assessing their personal risk and making their own decisions based on that, wherein those decisions are bad for the population as a whole. We have heard time and again that closing schools is one of the most effective means of containing an illness like this, and it isn’t because children are particularly vulnerable. It’s because the little monsters spread it around and carry the virus to a bunch of other people. Or in my own words, Typhoid Mary made decisions to keep serving food that were perfectly in line with her own personal risk. That did not work out well. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2020, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symptoms-of-covid-19/849403/3 "2020-03-13T13:01:43Z")
It looks a lot like a cold, but with a high fever, and then some difficulty breathing, that can quickly escalate to acute, in the older and compromised. (We are being inundated with this info!) ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2020, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symptoms-of-covid-19/849403/4 "2020-03-13T13:03:26Z")
[https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/about/symptoms.html](https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/about/symptoms.html) CDC page on symptoms. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2020, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symptoms-of-covid-19/849403/5 "2020-03-13T13:10:09Z")
Here is what the WHO says. I am mainly concerned because my wife is immuno-suppressed, she takes immune system suppressants, because she has had two organ transplant surgeries. [WHO, World Health Organization: Q&A on coronaviruses (COVID-19)](https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-coronaviruses) For — What are the symptoms of COVID-19? > [@](#): > > The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, tiredness, and dry cough. Some patients may have aches and pains, nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throat or diarrhea. These symptoms are usually mild and begin gradually. Some people become infected but don’t develop any symptoms and don’t feel unwell. Most people (about 80%) recover from the disease without needing special treatment. Around 1 out of every 6 people who gets COVID-19 becomes seriously ill and develops difficulty breathing. Older people, and those with underlying medical problems like high blood pressure, heart problems or diabetes, are more likely to develop serious illness. People with fever, cough and difficulty breathing should seek medical attention. That’s what it says now but you should refer to the site for their most current information. There is other COVID-19 information at that link. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2020, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symptoms-of-covid-19/849403/6 "2020-03-13T15:18:30Z")
Thanks - I’m not suggesting AT ALL that people be cavalier about spreading the virus. But I have encountered considerable confusion as to the best estimates of the risks and severity of symptoms a reasonably healthy individual might expect. ---
**Author:** ![dorvann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df705f/32.png) [@dorvann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dorvann)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2020, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symptoms-of-covid-19/849403/7 "2020-03-13T17:41:47Z")
For what it is worth both Wikipedia pages for “Influenza-like illness” and “Pneumonia” list corona viruses as a possible cause. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Influenza-like\_illness](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Influenza-like_illness) [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pneumonia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pneumonia) ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2020, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symptoms-of-covid-19/849403/8 "2020-03-13T17:51:22Z")
From [Ars Technica](https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/03/dont-panic-the-comprehensive-ars-technica-guide-to-the-coronavirus/#h6): > [@](#): > > According to data from nearly 56,000 laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 patients in China, the rundown of common symptoms went as follows: > > 88 percent had a fever > 68 percent had a dry cough > 38 percent had fatigue > 33 percent coughed up phlegm > 19 percent had shortness of breath > 15 percent had joint or muscle pain > 14 percent had a sore throat > 14 percent headache > 11 percent had chills > 5 percent had nausea or vomiting > 5 percent had nasal congestion > 4 percent had diarrhea > Less than one percent coughed up blood or blood-stained mucus > Less than one percent had watery eyes