We looked at health reports from people who reported having COVID in December, as Omicron spread through the UK, and compared them with data from early October, when Delta was the dominant variant. 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We're three years into the COVID-19 pandemic. Heres what you need to know about Omicron symptom longevity and when its wise to seek medical attention. According to Harvard Medical School, most people will not be contagious 10 days after the onset of their symptoms, provided their symptoms have improved. Diarrhea. It can cause a variety of symptoms, such as . Lower back pain. SymptomsMany patients with omicron have a variety of symptoms that resolve quickly and don't require hospital care, NPR reported. The World Health Organization (WHO) and Australian health authorities say whethersomeone has symptoms or not, they can still spread COVID-19. Something went wrong, please try again later. Galiatsatos agreed, saying fatigue and a dry cough may linger for a few weeks after the infection clears. This new variant ismuch more infectiousthan previous variants, causing asurge in casesacross the UK and inother countries. Congestion or runny nose. Fatigue. 2020;8:473. doi:10.3389/fpubh.2020.00473. Stage three is when early symptoms start to pop up, like lower back ache, night sweats and a scratchy throat. Its causing symptoms that are much more like a regular cold, particularly in people whove been vaccinated, and fewer general systemic symptoms, such as nausea, muscle pains, diarrhoea and skin rashes. Lots of sore throat. Early in the pandemic, studies showed that infections from circulating COVID-19 strains usually began with a fever, followed by cough, nausea and vomiting, then diarrhea. In some cases, individuals will continue to feel symptoms even when they are no longer contagious. But it's very possible that doctors and patients are simply paying more attention to these symptoms than they did with earlier variants, says Dr. Scott Roberts, an assistant professor of infectious diseases at the Yale School of Medicine. The symptoms of Omicron are similar to those of previous variants, however, it's becoming increasingly clear that it is less likely to cause severe illness. Many people have compared Omicrons symptoms to a common cold, with a scratchy throat and runny nose appearing amongst the most common symptoms. Data from the ZOE COVID study apphows that there was no significant difference in thes symptoms profile between Delta and Omicron, with the five most common symptoms being a runny nose, headache, fatigue, sneezing and a sore throat. Dr. Arias has seen severe presentation of the disease particularly in high-risk patients, such as immunocompromised individuals, the elderly or someone with one or more comorbidities. The prevalence of Omicron symptoms per the ZOE COVID app. This means people infected tend to cough more and produce more phlegm. Again, everyone is different and will experience their own early symptoms, but these seem to be among the group reported be most patients. "We are seeing high fevers and difficulty breathing due to COVID-19 infection," Dr. Ball says. For some, symptoms last as much as 10 to 14 days. If those and other COVID-19 symptoms persist after several months, its time to speak with a doctor. Now its shifting massively to a very mucous-y feeling cough, Galiatsatos said. Another difference doctors are noticing: Loss of smell and taste considered a telltale sign of COVID-19 is not nearly as common with omicron infections. Contagiousness. But as Omicron continues to surge in new areas around the globe, doctors are getting more information about the variant and its symptoms. Thank God I had my 3rd covid vax in late December!! All True enough but when testing is not readily available we must rely on symptoms & signs to diagnose it. But you're pushing more and more and more toward the omicron variant," says Davis, who contributed to the study. iStock. "So this is really something that's different between omicron and delta," Xu says. However, many people are suffering from long covid, where unpleasant symptoms last for months. But the likelihoodof someone never displaying symptoms and spreading COVID-19 is still being investigated, WHO said. Claire Bugos is a staff reporter covering health and science for Verywell. The extensive mutations of its spike proteins make for the Omicron variant. "In this period, we still have delta circulating in the community. Verywell Health's content is for informational and educational purposes only. Experts across the globe have identified eight warning signs of Omicron and warned these are most likely to come on in the early stages of the illness. Quiz: Which Gavin and Stacey character are you? Most severe cases are definitely among the unvaccinated, he said. Stage three is when early symptoms start to pop up, like lower back ache, night sweats and a scratchy throat. "This is a pretty different surge," Brendan Carr, MD, chair of emergency medicine for New York City-based Mount Sinai Health System, told NPR. And doctors are finding a key difference among their patients who are ending up in the ER or being admitted: Many are neither struggling to breathe nor dealing with perilously low oxygen levels. Three that have gained attention are nausea, night sweats and lower back pain. A study published online on Jan. 2 provides some of the first compelling evidence from the U.S. that the chance of ending up in the hospital is lower with omicron compared with the delta variant. According to the CDC, most cases of transmission occur early in a person's infection, in the one or twodays before the onset of symptoms, and in the twoor threedays afterwards. According to the ZOE symptom tracker app, people have also reported symptoms which aren't usually associated with coronavirus, including diarrhoea, loss of appetite and nausea. But this apparent change in the disease that a severe infection in the lungs doesn't seem as common means fewer people need supplemental oxygen or intubation. But only Covid isolation has a strict number of days indoors and with no contact with other people that you must adhere to. The omicron variant of the coronavirus has surged in the U.K. and is now dominant in the U.S. as well. Here's what you need to know about the vaccine. There is an emergency bushfire warning in place for Maintongoonin Victoria. 10 January - And among unvaccinated people, he says, an omicron infection can feel like the same unforgiving disease to him. But if an individual continues to test positive on a rapid test after those five days, Morris said theyre still infectious and should remain isolated until they test negative on a rapid test. The variant looked wildly different from earlier versions of the coronavirus and it quickly became clear that these mutations gave omicron an uncanny ability to sidestep our vaccines and spread very rapidly. The CDC's guidelines are limited: Isolate if you've either tested positive in the past 10 days or are experiencing symptoms, and end your isolation after 10 days only if you've gone 24 hours . "You don't get off scot-free just because you happen to be infected in the time of omicron. Cough . Our analysis showedno significant differencein the overall symptom profile of Delta and Omicron, with the top five symptoms in both time periods being a runny nose, headache, fatigue, sneezing and a sore throat. The eight early warning symptoms of Omicron . "It's mostly that runny nose, sore throat and nasal congestion," says Dr. John Vanchiere, the associate director of the Center for Emerging Viral Threats at LSU Health Shreveport. Stage five is isolation if you have tested positive or from when you started noticing symptoms. People who are mixing socially and those who are unvaccinated are more susceptible to contracting COVID-19. After leaving isolation, they should continue to wear a mask through day 10 when around others, but can otherwise go about their business. "It's mostly that runny nose, sore throat and nasal congestion," John Vanchiere, MD, PhD, associate director of the Center for Emerging Viral Threats at Ochsner LSU Health Shreveport (La. Why is the Omicron variant considered milder than the Delta variant? That's why, she says, everyone should be vaccinated and boosted. It's also still not clear how much vaccines and prior infections are responsible for some of these early clinical impressions that omicron is causing a milder constellation of symptoms, says Dr. Daniel Griffin, who's chief of infectious diseases at ProHEALTH in New York and an instructor at Columbia University. In one recent study, researchers found that people with Omicron infections were less likely to be hospitalized, end up in the I.C.U. All Rights Reserved. Cold-like symptoms - including a runny nose, sore throat and persistent sneezing - became more common, along with a headache and cough, particularly in people who had been vaccinated. Finally, regardless of the government guidelines, whether you have COVID or not, its best to stay at home if youre feeling ill with strange or cold-like symptoms, and to avoid contacts and wear a mask if you do go out, to avoid spreading your germs to others who may be more vulnerable. However, with omicron around 50% of new colds currently are, in fact, COVID. Among patients with severe omicron cases, their main complaint has been fever and respiratory symptoms that require some sort of oxygen, Dr. Arias said. Copyright 2023 Becker's Healthcare. Previously common symptoms such as shortness of breath, fever and loss of smell fell down the rankings. A SARS-CoV-2 Omicron subvariant, BA.2, became the dominant strain of COVID-19 in the United States. In this installment, AMA member Stephen Parodi, MD, an infectious disease physician, took time to discuss what patients need to know about the COVID-19 Omicron Variant. Cough. If our goal is to get COVID out of the world, weve got to do our best to not catch it. Dr Maragakis . "The cough is milder [than previous variants], if there's any cough at all, and fever seems to be a little less common.". Follow our Covid live blog for all the latest news & stories. A wide range of symptoms has been reported by people with COVID-19, but some of the most common are: Fever. Muscle or body aches. Irritation of the lung tissue could cause dry cough and breathlessness, said Panagis Galiatsatos, MD, MHS, assistant professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins University. When the body is primed to recognize the virus, either through vaccination or prior infection, the immune system tends to react more quickly, causing symptoms to appear even before you are contagious. Q. Xu and her colleagues found that the risk of needing to go to the ER dropped from about 15% during the delta surge to 5% during the early omicron surge (about a 70% decrease) and the risk of being hospitalized dropped from 4% to 2% (or by 50%). With infections at all-time highs in the U.S., the clinical picture is now coming together and starting to confirm what other countries have found a typical case of omicron not only presents slightly differently but also likely carries a lower chance of getting seriously ill. Scientists at Case Western Reserve University have preliminary evidence that the risk of being admitted to the hospital or the intensive care unit during the omicron surge in the U.S. is about half of the risk observed during the delta surge. Back in 2020, it quickly became clear that the original and Alpha versions of the coronavirus caused three very common symptoms cough, fever and loss of smell as well as at least 20 others. That consistency, Xu says, suggests the reduction in severity is due, in part, to something inherent with omicron itself and not simply because of changes in vaccination status. Last week Victoria announced Omicron was the dominant variant in new cases. 2020 THE SUN, US, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED | TERMS OF USE | PRIVACY | YOUR AD CHOICES | SITEMAP, There are five stages of the Omicron illness as people pick up the fast-spreading bug, The 5 stages of an Omicron infection you need to know about, New hope as scientists discover killer T-cells CAN boost immunity against Omicron, Another new variant with 46 mutations detected in France - but its spreading slowly. This is a small study, like the South African study, looking at six Omicron cases from a single household. Experts say to see a doctor if they last longer. The omicron variant of the coronavirus has surged in the U.K. and is now dominant in the U.S. as well. Cough. Nausea. Omicron has sent waves of panic through the country as it became clear the latest mutation of the coronavirus was incredibly transmissible. Omicron Variants BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 Are Now Dominant in U.S. Sore Throat Is the Most Common COVID Symptom Right Now, Your COVID-19 Symptoms May Vary Based on How Many Shots Youve Had. Omicron is overtaking Delta in terms of circulation, and it is very efficiently transmitted between people. "The cough is milder [than previous variants], if there's any cough at all, and fever seems to be a little less common.". Hospitals are seeing more patients now compared to earlier surges have milder symptoms and are seeing more incidental discovery of the disease, Cesar Arias, MD, PhD, chief of the division of infectious diseases at Houston Methodist Hospital and co-director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research at the system's research institute, told Becker's. Although some lateral flows can miss the infection so if you have the symptoms go get a PCR to be sure. According to the Australian Department of Health, the incubation period forCOVID-19 can range between one and 14 days, with most cases displaying symptoms by day 5 or 6 afterexposure. Morris said symptoms indicative of pneumonia or respiratory failure, like shortness of breath, chest pain, cough tend to show up later, between day five and 10. So some of this lower risk could be because of vaccination, but the data altogether suggests that there is a reduced risk for hospitalization with the omicron variant compared with the delta variant. After 10 days, you can consider yourself good to go, says Chin-Hong. The beginningWith omicron, symptoms likely come on more quickly once infected. Despite the official symptoms from the Government and the NHS remaining the same three they have been for the duration of the Covid pandemic, data is showing Omicron may have different symptoms and often more varied ones. For this reason, vaccinated individuals tend to have fewer or less intense symptoms than unvaccinated sick people, and their symptoms usually resolve more quickly. Health experts weigh in on symptoms, testing, masking and more. Shortness of breath. We also may change the frequency you receive our emails from us in order to keep you up to date and give you the best relevant information possible. 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