Covid-19: Omicron symptoms to look out for

Here are a few symptoms of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 that one should look out for.

The Omicron Covid-19 variant, first detected on November 24, 2021, in South Africa, has been spreading rapidly around the globe. It is also driving the present third wave of the pandemic in India. While Omicron, so far, is causing mild illness in people, one cannot take chances with their health. There have been reports that symptoms of this variant are different from the other variants of SARS-CoV-2.

The traditional symptoms like loss of smell, taste and breathing troubles are rarely present in Omicron cases.

The traditional symptoms like loss of smell, taste and breathing troubles are rarely present in Omicron cases. Because of these reasons, many are considering Omicron as a less severe infection, but as experts warn, one shouldn't take it lightly.

The Union Health Ministry, who recently drew a comparison between the second and the third wave of the pandemic in India and specifically Delhi, found fever with or without shivering, cough, irritation in the throat, muscular weakness and tiredness are the five common Omicron symptoms. However, the symptoms vary from person to person, depending on their vaccination status, immunity and a few other things.

Here are some common symptoms for the Omicron variant of Covid-19:

Cough, cold and fever are common symptoms of Covid, be it Omicron or Delta.

Body ache, generalised weakness, fatigue, headache, sore throat, dry cough and fever are some common symptoms noted in the initial days after getting infected.

According to experts, four prominent symptoms of Omicron are fever for a couple of days, a lot of body ache, sore throat, and occasional loose motions.

Headache, tiredness, body pain are more prominent symptoms of Omicron.

Fever is the common symptom along with upper respiratory tract infection among children between the age of 11 and 18 years, according to the Union Health Ministry.

The American Centre for Disease Control and Prevention warned that people should watch out for pale, grey or blue-coloured skin, lips and nails if infected with the Omicron variant.

Dr Manoj Goel, Director, Pulmonology, Fortis Memorial Research Institute, Gurugram, says abdominal ache, nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite and diarrhoea could be symptoms of Omicron infecting the gut mucosa and resulting in inflammation.

Though these are a few common symptoms found in people infected with Covid-19, they are not sure-shot ways to know about the infection.