Mapping a Detailed COVID-19 Symptoms Timeline
Thanks to a team of researchers at the USC Michelson Center for Convergent Bioscience, COVID-19’s progression is being mapped. This vital knowledge can be leveraged to more quickly apply treatments, and help limit COVID-19’s spread.
A USC Michelson Center research team analyzed data from more than 55,000 COVID-19 patients and compared the evolution of symptoms in those cases to symptom progression in influenza, SARS, and MERS. The researchers found that COVID-19 patients who develop symptoms are more likely to experience fever first, followed by cough and muscle pain.
This specific COVID-19 symptom timeline helps doctors make accurate diagnoses and guide patients in when to seek medical care, reducing the spread of the disease. “If patients with symptoms quickly underwent testing and contact tracing, these outbreaks could be contained,” the authors wrote.
The peer-reviewed, open-access article appears in the journal Frontiers in Public Health.