Similarities between COVID‑19 and influenza
Symptoms:
fever, chills/raised temperature, cough, difficulty breathing/shortness of breath, fatigue, sore throat, runny nose, muscle/joint pain, headache, also vomiting and diarrhoea in some patients (more common in children)
Infectious period:
infected persons can infect other people at least 1 day before symptoms develop
Route of infection transmission:
both diseases are transmitted through respiratory droplets (human‑to‑human transmission)
Complications:
pneumonia, lung failure, ARDS (acute respiratory distress syndrome), sepsis, heart attack or stroke, multiple organ dysfunction syndrome, exacerbation of chronic diseases (including lung diseases, heart diseases, nervous system diseases and diabetes), secondary bacterial infections
Risk groups likely to develop severe symptoms:
the elderly, immunocompromised patients, people with certain comorbidities – lung diseases, heart diseases, diabetes and kidney diseases
Differences between COVID‑19 and influenza
COVID‑19
Influenza
Symptoms:
taste and/or smell disorders
do not occur
Period in which the symptoms develop:
longer – usually 5 days after infection, but they can also develop as early as day 2 or as late as day 14 after infection
shorter – the symptoms usually develop within 1‑4 days after infection
Infectivity:
usually 1–2 days before symptoms develop, but the infectious period is longer
(up to 10‑12 days after infection)
(up to 10‑12 days after infection)
usually 3–5 days before symptoms develop
Children:
get sick less often than adults
an important factor of infectivity in the community
Complications:
blood clots in veins and arteries of the lungs, heart, lower limbs and brain, fatigue, shortness of breath, cough, muscle and joint pain, chest pain, difficulty thinking and concentrating, depression, palpitations, loss of smell and/or taste disorders
in children: paediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome temporally associated with COVID‑19 (PIMS‑TS)
in children: paediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome temporally associated with COVID‑19 (PIMS‑TS)
most people recover within a few days to 2 weeks, but complications may include sinusitis, otitis media and myocarditis
Risk groups likely to develop severe symptoms:
people with obesity
children, pregnant women, people with chronic diseases (including respiratory diseases, cardiovascular diseases, endocrine system diseases, nervous system diseases and diseases affecting organs – liver)
Vaccine:
available
available
Medications:
Remdesivir (approved for compassionate use)
available
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If alarming symptoms appear, i.e. persistent fever above 39°C, shortness of breath, chest pain and petechiae, immediately call the Medicover Hot Line (500 900 999) or emergency services (112)
