Coronavirus symptoms update: Hiccups could be a symptom of Covid doctors warn

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According to research, it is possible that hiccups are a rare symptom of COVID-19. A recent case study saw an Egyptian man experience sudden hiccups which prompted a Covid test which came back positive. This comes after a previous case study involving a 64-year-old man who was found to have persistent hiccups as the only symptom of COVID-19.

A man from Egypt began to suffer with persistent hiccups which became more severe.

Alongside his hiccups, a fever and a sore throat were felt, two major symptoms of COVID-19.

In order to understand what was causing his hiccups, medics in Cairo ordered an abdominal ultrasound after the bout became more severe and frequent.

After a CT scan it was relieved the man was indeed infected with COVID-19.

His can showed white patches with pools of fluid built up in the lungs that are caused by viral pneumonia.

Medics who treated the infected man who had hiccups for two weeks believe his symptoms were a “rare presentation” of the illness.

The reasons for the sudden and prolonged hiccups, according to experts, is due the virus attacking the diaphragm which is the muscle that controls breathing.

This causes it to spasm, leading to hiccups.

Hiccups have also been linked to other infectious diseases including flu and tuberculosis.

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Hiccups could be a sign that the virus has entered the body, according to another report published in the American Journal of Emergency Medicine by doctors from Cook County Hospital in Chicago.

Doctors treated a 62-year-old man who had been hiccupping for four days but showed no other signs of illness.

When they took an X-ray and CT scan of his chest, they found the characteristic signs of COVID-19 which included tiny white patches, that resemble ground glass, scattered around the lungs.

The man was kept in hospital for three days, treated with drugs and then sent home.

It was only when the infection started to clear that his hiccups finally stopped.

The doctors at Cook County Health urged “physicians [to] keep COVID-19 infections on their differential as more cases are discovered through atypical presentations.”

They added that doctors should also remain “vigilant and maintain personal protective equipment to avoid exposure from the undifferentiated patient.”

It is now recognised that COVID-19 attacks the diaphragm, the wall of muscle that controls breathing, and which goes into spasm, and the result is hiccups.

When are hiccups considered serious?

Hiccups should only last a few minutes and you can usually sit for them to go away.

There’s often no obvious reason why a person gets hiccups, says the NHS, but some people find certain things trigger them such as stress, strong emotions like excitement, and eating and drinking.

But the health body advises to see a GP if your hiccups last longer than 48 hours or come back very often and are affecting your life.

If you have experienced sudden and prolonged hiccups it’s imperative to be vigilant of any new symptoms which could indicate an infection.

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