From high fever to dry cough, coronavirus is known to be associated with a number of unpleasant symptoms.
Now, new data shows that for one in five people taking Covid-19, their only symptom is a skin rash.
In another 17% of cases, a rash is the first symptom before others develop later.
The rash manifests itself in various ways, including in the form of hives or lumps. They were recorded all over the body.
The data comes from the ZOE symptom tracking application administered by King’s College London (KCL) researchers, which operated Covid throughout the pandemic.
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For one in five people taking Covid-19, they are just a symptom of a skin rash, according to new data. In the picture, a case with “Covid figures”

More than 400 people submitted images, which have now been published in an online database called Covid skin signs. The range of rashes is amazing, it manifests itself in hives (pictured) or in large pieces and seen all over the body
ZOE data found that people who tested positive for Covid were 67% more likely to develop a rash than someone who was not infected.
Another independent study was conducted on 11,544 people who were asked to provide images of their eruptions.
“Surprisingly, among the respondents to the independent online survey, we found that a percentage of SARS-CoV-2 positive cases reported rash as the first presentation and 21% as the only clinical sign of COVID-19,” the researchers write.
The study was published in the British Journal of Dermatology and more than 400 people submitted images, which have now been published in an online database called Covid skin signs.
The images are classified according to the type of rash and include “Covid figures”, “purple”, “oral” and “urticarial”.
The rash manifests itself in various ways, including in the form of hives or lumps. They were recorded all over the body.
“Rash accumulates with other COVID-19 symptoms, is predictive of a positive buffer test, and occurs in a significant number of cases, either alone or before other classic symptoms,” the researchers write.

In the picture, a pupal rash that was seen on the lower leg of a Covid patient. A pupal rash looks like a lot of small bloodstains on the skin and is caused by blood vessels leaking.

This individual’s rash has been classified as pityrias rosea, a type of rash that begins as a single red, scaly area that spreads to the trunk and upper limbs.

Some of the more than 400 people who sent images of Covid-related eruptions to Covidskinsigns.com also reported oral eruptions.
“Recognition of eruptions is important in identifying new and previous cases of Covid-19.”
Coronavirus attacks several body systems and therefore there are a number of symptoms of Covid-19.
But only the symptoms of the “classic triad” of dry cough, fever and loss of smell or taste are currently recognized by the NHS.
Loss of smell and taste was officially recognized as a symptom of Covid on May 18, 2020.
In June, KCL academics called for rashes to be considered Covid’s fourth official symptom.
Researchers at KCL have recently again called on policy makers to expand the set of recognized symptoms.
They said expanding the list of symptoms to include fatigue, sore throat, headache and diarrhea would allow the detection of “millions” of unconfirmed cases.
The current test and follow-up rules mean that tampons are only for people with a fever, continuous cough or loss of smell or taste.
Professor Tim Spector, chief scientist at Zoe, an epidemiologist at King’s College London and co-author of the latest study on rashes, said in February: anosmia misses a significant proportion of positive cases.
“We identified anosmia as a symptom in May, and our work led the government to add it to the list; now it is clear that we need to add more.
“By inviting users who have any new symptoms to take a test, we have confirmed that there are many more symptoms of Covid.”