For a lot of COVID-19 patients, the symptoms of illnesses start mild. Typically, on the first to the second day of infection, a COVID-19 patient may experience dry cough, shortness of breath, fever, fatigue, and muscle soreness, says an article.

If symptoms from the illness get worst, it will typically do so within 5 to 10 days.

On average, COVID-19 patients in Wenzhou and Wuhan, China, who were admitted to hospitals, went to seek medical assistance from hospitals after a week of experiencing the symptoms of the illness. After three days, patients with critical cases of the disease were sent to the Intensive Care Unit after three days of being admitted to the hospital.

The First Week of SARS-CoV-2 Infection is Critical 

According to this research in China, doctors believe that the first week of getting infected with the novel coronavirus is critical. It helps determine the severity of the COVID-19 case.

According to Megan Coffee, an infectious disease clinician from New York, it is observed that there are a lot of patients with COVID-19 who sheds the virus in five to seven days. This is mainly seen in people who did not have severe cases of the illness. Typically, there is some control of the novel coronavirus on an infected person during their first week of getting it, she added.

What Does Shortness of Breath Indicate?

In severe cases of COVID-19, respiratory failure often occur. This occurs when blood does not receive sufficient oxygen. One way how doctors identify these severe cases is by determining if the patient is experiencing shortness of breath.

In recent research of 85 COVID-19 deaths in Wuhan, it was found that the early onset of shortness of breath after getting infected can be a sign of a severe case of the disease, Many patients in the study lost their lives from respiratory failure. Two-thirds of the patients needed machines to help them breathe.

However, there is still a low chance that all of the COVID-19 patients will immediately experience difficulties in breathing after the initial days of the infection.

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According to Coffee, shortness of breath is usually experienced by COVID-19 patients on the fifth, eighth, or tenth day of getting infected with the novel coronavirus.

When Do I Need to Go to the Hospital?

However, not all patient who experiences shortness of breath needs to visit the hospital says Coffee. She said that a patient could observe certain signs to determine if they need to seek immediate medical attention.

Usually, Coffee tells people if they are experiencing shortness of breath, and it is difficult for them to speak a full sentence, walk a flight of stairs or walk across a room, then these are signs that they are experiencing a severe version of shortness of breath.

People who are having difficulties inhaling and exhaling should visit the emergency room, says Coffee. However, patients with symptoms getting worse should discuss their case with a doctor.