Symptoms of the Omicron variant also include hives and skin rash. These are symptoms of the infection that occur on the skin and in particular rashes, especially on the hands, feet and elbows. They are part of the symptoms of Covid together with fever, cough, loss of smell and taste, headache, muscle aches. Reported later than the other symptoms, now several studies show that dermatological disorders can be the first symptom to appear and also the only one to develop. Recognizing the effects of the coronavirus on the skin is important to identify cases of positivity early, especially among the asymptomatic. The latest research, an Italian study conducted with the support of the Italian Society of Medical and Surgical Dermatology,

“Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic – says Ketty Peris, president of SIDeMaST and Director of the UOC of Dermatology at the Gemelli Polyclinic in Rome – SIDeMaST has been active by carrying out various scientific studies focused on skin diseases and Sars-CoV-2 infection and carrying out numerous support activities for patients with skin diseases. The study is particularly interesting because it confirms that the skin can indicate a Sars-CoV-2 infection. For this reason, it is essential to check our skin even more, because it could warn us and warn us in advance about what is happening in our body, giving us the opportunity to move in advance and help us make an early diagnosis of the disease and also avoid possible further infections “. The study was coordinated by Professor Angelo Valerio Marzano, director of the School of Specialization in Dermatology and Venereology of the University of Milan, Associate Editor of the Italian Journal of Dermatology and Venereology. Marzano was also the first patient to be hospitalized for coronavirus on February 22, 2020 in Milan, immediately after patient 1 from Codogno.

The study was conducted on 200 patients throughout Italy. Objective: to statistically correlate the 6 specific skin pictures with the severity of the Covid-19 disease and the symptoms of the latter (fever, pneumonia, breathing difficulties, etc.). With the support of SIDeMaST, 21 Italian Dermatology Centers contributed to the collection of clinical data of patients with skin manifestations associated with COVID-19. Parameters considered included sex, age at the time of disease onset, presence or absence of comorbidities, skin manifestations, presence or absence of mucosal lesions, duration of skin manifestations. And again, skin-related symptoms, systemic symptoms, duration of systemic symptoms, latency between skin manifestations and systemic symptoms and disease severity. These are the six symptoms identified: urticarial (13.2%); erythematous or morbilliform (27.4%); chickenpox-like rash (16.2%); chilblains (25.4%); bruising (3.6%); vasculitis (10.7%). For researchers, it is therefore necessary to pay particular attention to precise signals that appear on the skin: an apparent urticaria, a very extensive erythema, a sudden vasculitis, bruising and chilblains are all possible spies of the disease that must lead us to take a swab.

Covid, study on symptoms in Great Britain

In Great Britain, according to the data released by the ZOE COVID Study application – the health status of registered subjects and tested positive for Covid is tracked daily from a smartphone app – the characteristic symptoms of the Omicron variant infection are above all a rash. In this case, two types of skin disorders have been reported. One is similar to an irritation, appears in small areas, is itchy and bumpy, and can last for up to several weeks. It can appear anywhere on the body, the second type, on the other hand, resembles hives.