Dr Bhatti advises on differences between hay fever and Covid-19

The Director of Public Health recently addressed concerns from hay fever sufferers who might be confusing their symptoms with coronavirus.

Those prone to develop hay fever tend to fair worse in springtime when flowers are in bloom, and during a press conference on Saturday Dr Sohail Bhatti gave hay fever sufferers advice on how to identify their symptoms.

“As we enter the hay fever season, a lot of the symptoms we have in hay fever can be like a cold,” Dr Bhatti said
“But there are some substantial symptoms that actually indicate this could be Covid, and the main ones we look for is a new cough.”

Dr Bhatti added further symptoms of Covid-19 include fatigue and in three quarters of cases a fever.

One of the symptoms Dr Bhatti asked the public to be aware of is shortness of breath.

“I mean that you normally might have been able to walk across a room and now you are finding yourself short of breath,” Dr Bhatti said.

“There’s a number of supplementary symptoms we have some interest in, and certainly some of the local people have had.”

He added a headache with along with the other symptoms could be a sign of Covid-19, as well as, a loss of taste, smell or appetite, and a sore throat.

A “significant proportion” of those with coronavirus have also reported loose stools, Dr Bhatti said.

He advised anyone with these symptoms to call 111.

“We want to make sure anyone suffering from this virus is identified quickly,” Dr Bhatti said.

Symptoms of hay fever include sneezing and coughing, a runny or blocked nose
itchy, red or watery eyes, itchy throat, mouth, nose and ears, loss of smell, pain around your temples and forehead, headache, earache and feeling tired.