COVID-19 not only attacks and causes the body from the inside Symptoms such as dry cough, fever and shortness of breath. According to the latest research, the disease caused by the coronavirus is also noticeable on the skin.
In a study, Spanish dermatologists described five clinical patterns that could be observed in connection with COVID-19 diseases and indicated symptoms of a possible infection.
These five skin changes have been observed in corona patients.
Corona symptoms on the skin
The reason for the investigation was increasing Reports of skin changes observed in COVID-19 sufferers had been. In Italy, for example, skin lesions are said to have occurred in every fifth patient.
Overall, Dr. Cristina Galván Casas from the Hospital Universitario de Móstoles in Madrid and her team Photos and data from 375 patients from all over Spain. All subjects had either confirmed or suspected SARS-CoV-2 infection.
1. Pseudo-frostbite on hands and feet with a mild course of the disease
In about 19 percent of the patients, frostbite-like skin changes, so-called pseudo-chilblains, occurred.
These itchy swellings are called acral erythematous swellings in technical jargon. You point a reddish to violet color, can throw pustules and blisters and often affect the hands and feet of a patient.
Dr. Casas and her team found the pseudo-frostbite predominantly in younger patients with a mild course of the disease. The symptom usually appeared late and lasted an average of 12.7 days.
2. Blistering on the skin as a corona sign
As another COVID-19 symptom on the skin, the dermatologists observed so-called vesicular eruptions: About nine percent of the examined suffered from blistering.
The itchy skin changes mainly occurred in middle-aged patients. In contrast to the pseudo frostbite, they did not form at the end of COVID-19 disease, but at the beginning. The little bubbles reminded the researchers chickenpox and were visible for an average of 10.4 days. They settled mainly on the patient’s trunk, but also on the extremities.
3. Wheals on the trunk as COVID-19 symptom
Likewise Wheals occurred in 19 percent of the patients analyzed on the skin.
The so-called urticarial eruptions increasingly occurred on the torso of the person affected, where they were with uncomfortable itching went along. On average, they had disappeared after 6.8 days.
4. Dandruff and redness as a side effect
In addition to the vesicular and urticarial eruptions, the scientists identified so-called maculopapular eruptions as a possible COVID-19 symptom: 47 percent of the test subjects sometimes had extensive scaling and reddening of the skin, which could be seen for an average of 8.6 days. In some cases, papules (nodules) were formed on the extremities.
According to the Spaniards, the two clinical patterns 3 and 4 overlap. Not only did both appear shorter than the other symptoms, they were also always a side effect of the already known, general COVID-19 symptoms and both stood with one serious course of the disease.
5. Necrosis in elderly corona patients
Dead or dead tissue due to a lack of blood supply could be observed in about six percent of those examined.
This skin change mainly occurred in older patients with a severe course of the disease. In this group, the death rate was ten percent. For comparison: in the total group it was 1.9 percent.
More studies needed
Dr. Cristina Galván Casas and her colleagues concluded their study with the indication that the five clinical patterns provide an indication of COVID-19 disease and can thus help with a diagnosis.
Whether the changes in the skin are directly caused by SARS-CoV-2 or whether they are the cause of a co-infection must be investigated further.
Sources:
Classification of the cutaneous manifestations of COVID-19: a rapid prospective nationwide consensus study in Spain with 375 cases, in: onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Lesions on the toes: possible new COVID-19 symptom discovered, in: aerztezeitung.de
Five clinical patterns: What traces of COVID-19 leave on the skin, in: aerztezeitung.de
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