Skin rashes also a symptom of COVID-19 infection: study

As the scientific and medical community continues to find ways to detect COVID-19 in patients, more and more research is being conducted to understand the various symptoms patients can experience during the onset of the new coronavirus infection. Cough, fever and shortness of breath have long been understood to be the signs of this viral infection, but in-depth study into the disease is still coming out with more signs that could signal the onset of COVID-19.

A new study by researchers at the UK-based King's College London and healthcare company Joey Global Ltd indicate that skin rashes are a sign of the coronavirus infection, and should be added to the list of symptoms that have been associated with the disease.

The findings of the study were published in the preprint server medRxiv, which means they are yet to be peer-reviewed. However, the findings suggest that the development of rashes on the surface of the skin could be able to predict COVID-19 in patients who are yet to be tested, and who may have been showing one other symptom associated with the disease.

According to reports, this may be the first research report of its kind which insists that skin rashes may be symptoms of COVID-19. However, studies suggesting this have been conducted earlier as well. In other studies conducted since March, skin rashes are reported to have appeared on COVID-19 patients, and this may confuse the identification of many other diseases.

In March, research published in the Journal of American Academy of Dermatology reported that the skin of a COVID-19 patient had similar rashes as the ones that appear in dengue. Reacting to this, many dermatologists at the time had said that this could not only be a problem in identifying other physical problems, but also many other types of skin rashes associated with COVID-19, of which there isn't enough evidence or understanding.

In April, the US-based Cleveland Clinic also reported that there have been complaints of skin rashes on COVID-19 patients worldwide. According to the report, Italian dermatologists claimed that 20% of coronavirus-infected patients have seen this symptom differently, saying some patients had seen red rashes on their skin, while on some others they were bee-shaped. Some patients had rashes the size of blisters in chickenpox. At the same time, other patients have also experienced the breakout of ring-shaped spots in the skin as well.

COVID-19 symptom study

COVID-19 symptom study

The King’s College researchers collected data from more than 3.6 million users with the help of an app called UK COVID-19 Symptom Study. Of these, about 8.8% of the users tested positive for COVID-19 and their skin was found to have rashes or acral rashes one sees during viral fever. At the same time, 5.4% of the users who tested negative also presented with this symptom. In addition, the research further suggested that 8.2% of the users who were not tested may also present with this symptom of COVID-19.

Based on the results obtained from another independent online survey, the researchers found that about 17% of those who tested positive showed early signs of COVID-19 through the development of skin rashes on their body. Based on their findings, the study concluded that rashes appearing on the skin can be the only symptom of COVID-19 in some patients, while others may experience it along with the onset of other symptoms as well. The most prominent and significant symptoms should be considered first so that patients can be treated as quickly as possible.