Covid toes: The possible coronavirus symptom that can cause chilblain-like inflammation
Throughout the coronavirus pandemic, health officials have stated that the main symptoms to look out for include a high fever, a new, persistent cough and a loss or changed sense of smell and taste.
But now scientists believe that a new side effect could be linked to the virus, called âCovid toesâ.
Research by the International League of Dermatological Societies and the American Academy of Dermatology found that some coronavirus patients suffered from chilblain-like inflammation on their feet, which sometimes lasted for months at a time.
The team states that the condition typically develops within a week to four weeks of being infected and can result in toes becoming swollen or changing colour.
Symptoms are said to be mild in the majority of cases and the feet return to normal within weeks.
However, scientists say that in some cases the inflammation has continued for more than 150 days and that they fear their findings are âjust the tip of the icebergâ.
Dr Esther Freeman, principal investigator of the International Covid-19 Dermatology Registry â the collaboration between the two research bodies â said: âIt seems there is a certain sub-group of patients that, when they get Covid, they develop inflammation in their toes, which turns them red and swollen, and then they eventually turn purple.
âIn most cases, it is self-resolved and it goes away. It is relatively mild. It lasts on average about 15 days. But we have seen patients lasting a month or two months.â
She added: âWhat is very surprising is when you get beyond that 60-day mark â because itâs not like patients are resolving at day 70.
âItâs the fact that some of our patients are at over 150 days now â these are patients with red or purple or swollen toes for many months.â
Around half of the patients in the registry are reported to have Covid toes and about 16 per cent of those had to be hospitalised as a result, the figures suggest.
Dr Freeman said the identification of people with Covid toes symptoms â including some in the UK â helps scientists understand more about coronavirus-related symptoms elsewhere in the body.
âWe are starting to see long Covid in other organ systems, this is the first time we are recognising this can happen in the skin as well,â she explained.
âI think it raises a lot of questions about what sort of inflammation is going on â is there inflammation elsewhere in the body? We donât really know the answer yet.
âThe skin can be viewed as a window into the rest of the body because it is inflammation which you can see â and can be indicative of inflammation elsewhere.â
The figures are submitted by doctors treating patients with skin issues in dozens of countries around the world, meaning there are potentially numerous people with Covid toes who have not sought medical help.
Dr Freeman said that what her team is reporting is âprobably just the tip of the icebergâ.
Get a test if you have any symptoms of #Covid19.
These are:
▶️ a high temperature
▶️ a new, continuous cough
▶️ a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste
Most people with #coronavirus have at least one of these symptoms.
More advice:
▶️ https://t.co/yYaFVAjV0Z pic.twitter.com/8halobdTkD— Department of Health and Social Care (@DHSCgovuk) October 29, 2020
âItâs probably happening a lot more than weâre reporting but I think by reporting it more people will recognise it,â she said.
The figures are being presented at the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology (EADV) Congress in Switzerland this week.
This is not the first time that researchers have highlighted Covid toes as a potential symptom of coronavirus.
On 29 April, researchers from Spain published a study concerning the âcutaneous manifestations of Covid-19 diseaseâ, cutaneous meaning ârelating to the skinâ.
The scientists came across five different forms of rashes affecting 375 Covid-19 patients.
These included itchy or painful chilblain-like lesions on the hands and feet, including Covid toes; small blisters on the torso; small, flat and raised red bumps; blotchy red or blue-looking skin; and pink or white raised areas of the skin that looked similar to nettle rash.
Dr John Ingram, editor-in-chief of the British Journal of Dermatology, commented at the time that the investigation was âthe most definitive piece of research on the skin features associated with Covid-19 to dateâ.
âThere has been speculation for some time that the virus is responsible for a number of skin signs, but until now these had largely been individual or small scale case reports. This study represents a much more systematic and thorough categorisation of the features,â he stated.
In addition to Covid toes, people around the world have reported experiencing various other side effects they believe could be linked to the virus, including delirium, conjunctivitis and diarrhoea.
You can read more about the lesser known symptoms here.
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