Diarrhea caused by COVID-19 tends to be more watery, yellow or green in color. It may be accompanied by cramping and bloating. If you have COVID-19, you will likely develop other symptoms within a day or two, such as fever, cough, congestion and/or loss of taste and smell.
In some cases, the digestive symptom, particularly diarrhea, can be the initial presentation of COVID-19 and may only later (or never) present with respiratory symptoms.
We still do not know conclusively if COVID-19 can cause a long-term change in gut-brain messaging that leads to IBS or other disordered gut-brain interactions. But increasing evidence suggests that GI distress lasting six months or longer might be a symptom of long COVID.
loss of smell or taste. loss of appetite. nausea. occasional vomiting or diarrhoea.
COVID-19 gastrointestinal symptoms – Up to one-third of patients with COVID-19 initially present with gastrointestinal rather than respiratory symptoms, most commonly anorexia, diarrhea, nausea or vomiting, and abdominal pain.
Nausea, vomiting and diarrhea are less common symptoms of COVID-19. Still, when they do occur, they tend to be some of the first symptoms you will experience. Diarrhea caused by COVID-19 tends to be more watery, yellow or green in color. It may be accompanied by cramping and bloating.
Since then, there have been many studies conducted on the role of diarrhea in COVID patients. A meta-analysis of more than 18,000 COVID patients from 43 different studies found diarrhea to be the most common gastrointestinal symptom, affecting 11.5 percent of patients.
On June 30, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention added three symptoms to its COVID-19 list: Congestion/stuffy nose, nausea and diarrhea. Those three new conditions now join other symptoms identified by the CDC: Fever.
Most of the time, diarrhea is simply your gut's way of getting rid of a harmful invader, like a bacteria or virus.
Rest and Drink Fluids
Get plenty of rest and stay well hydrated. Fever, vomiting, and diarrhea can lead to significant dehydration, which can make you feel worse. Keep a big bottle of water by your bed and drink from it frequently. Broth soups, tea with honey, and fruit juice are also good choices.
By the 10th day after COVID symptoms begin, most people will no longer be contagious, as long as their symptoms have continued to improve and their fever has resolved. People who test positive for the virus but never develop symptoms over the following 10 days after testing are also probably no longer contagious.
People with moderate or severe COVID-19 should isolate through at least day 10. Those with severe COVID-19 may remain infectious beyond 10 days and may need to extend isolation for up to 20 days.
You are most infectious (or contagious) in the first 5 days after your symptoms start. You can also spread COVID-19 in the 48 hours before your symptoms start. If you never have symptoms, consider yourself most infectious in the 5 days after you test positive.
Keep in mind that if a person tests negative for COVID-19 but still exhibits symptoms, they may have another virus like the flu or a respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), which a COVID-19 test would not pick up.
Incubation periods can vary depending on the variant. No Symptoms, but Infected: some infected patients have no symptoms. Mild Infections: most people with symptoms have a mild illness, much like normal flu or a bad cold.
When Is the Coronavirus the Most Contagious? Researchers estimate that people who get infected with the coronavirus can spread it to others 2 to 3 days before symptoms start and are most contagious 1 to 2 days before they feel sick.
Signs and symptoms of COVID-19 can include fever, chills, cough, shortness of breath, fatigue, muscle aches, headache, loss of taste or smell, sore throat, nasal congestion or rhinorrhea, vomiting or diarrhea, and skin rashes.
Chronic GI symptoms were common, in particular abdominal pain (29.2%) and dyspepsia (29.2%), and were still present at 6 months for 43.8% of our participants following their COVID-19 illness, not having been present prior to it.
Symptoms usually last just a day or two, but occasionally they may last up to 14 days. Because the symptoms are similar, it's easy to confuse viral diarrhea with diarrhea caused by bacteria, such as Clostridioides difficile, salmonella and Escherichia coli, or parasites, such as giardia.