Researchers in the UK have asked the government to add new symptoms to a list that qualifies people to receive an automated COVID-19 test, reports BBC News.
What is happening?
Researchers are asking the British government to add fatigue, headaches, sore throats and diarrhea to the list of symptoms that cause a COVID-19 test, reports BBC News.
- Currently, anyone who has a cough, fever or loss of smell or taste can receive a test, according to BBC News.
- King’s College London and the Zoe Symptom Study said the addition of these symptoms would take up about 40% more cases. But it would also mean that those without COVID-19 would receive tests.
Why it matters:
According to Tim Spector, lead scientist of the study, increased testing is needed with new variants, according to The Daily Gazette, a news publication in the UK.
- ‘By inviting users who report new symptoms to do a test, we have confirmed that there are many more symptoms of COVID-19.
- ‘This is especially important with new variants that can cause different symptoms.
- “For us, the message to the public is clear: if you feel newly unwell, it may be SUITABLE and you need to take a test.”
British symptoms and the variant
A UK survey – created by the University of Oxford, University of Manchester, England for Public Health and Wellcome Trust – found that there were some differences in symptoms for those who had the British COVID-19 variant compared to the normal mutation as I wrote about the Deseret News.
- According to the survey, patients with the British variant reported less chance of taste and odor compared to those with the normal variant.
- However, coughs, sore throats, fatigue and myalgia have been reported more frequently for those with the British variant.