Early Covid-19 symptoms differ amongst different age groups and sexes: Study

A recent study conducted by investigators from King’s College London, found that early symptoms of COVID-19 differ amongst age groups as well as between the sexes. Findings from the study were published in the journal Lancet Digital Health.

For the study, the team of investigators analysed data from the ZOE COVID Symptom Study app between April and October of 2020. They then compared the prediction ability of the current National Health Service UK diagnostic criteria and a Hierarchical Gaussian Process model to detect early signs of COVID-19. The machine learning model incorporated characteristics such as age, sex and health conditions.

Findings from the study showed that the most important symptoms for early detection included loss of smell, chest pain, persistent cough, abdominal pain, blisters on feet, eye soreness and unusual muscle pain.

In people over the age of 60, loss of smell had less significance than in younger age groups. It was also discovered that men were more likely to report shortness of breath, fatigue, chills and shivers, while women were more likely to report loss of smell, chest pain and persistent cough.