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Experts don't consider constipation to be a common symptom coronavirus disease. But there are certain conditions associated with coronavirus disease and its treatment that can lead to problems with emptying.
Can constipation be a symptom of COVID-19
According to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), constipation is a condition where you infrequently empty your bowels or experience discomfort with a bowel movement.
There is some evidence that links constipation to COVID-19, but they are not very convincing.
- In particular, the American Journal of Gastroenterology published a study in May 2020 on the course of COVID-19 in a man who was admitted to the hospital with fever, cough, nausea, stomach pain and constipation.
He had a CT scan that showed colonic obstruction, a condition in which the muscles of the intestine stop contracting.
- Another study, published in the Journal of Microbiology, Immunology, and Infections in 2020, details the symptoms of people with COVID-19 who were hospitalized in Iran.
The patients' symptoms included constipation, stomach pain, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and dark, sticky stools that usually indicate internal bleeding.< /p>
Diarrhea was the most common gastrointestinal symptom, affecting 6.1% of patients.
- Earlier this year, in the European Journal of Pharmacology, some common drugs used to treat severe forms of COVID-19 , including the antiviral drug Remdesivir, can lead to constipation in some cases.
However, in all these situations, constipation was not the only symptom of COVID-19.
Constipation is a common problem < p>And given how common bowel problems are in the general population (approximately 42 million people in the U.S. suffer from constipation), it's hard to say whether COVID-19 actually causes this condition, or if it's an accident that happens to COVID-19 patients as well.
Constipation should not be considered a symptom of COVID-19,
says infectious disease expert Amesh A. Adala, MD, senior scientist at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health.
Infectious disease doctor John Sellick noted that patients with COVID-19 who complain of constipation are most likely experiencing it due to dehydration.
And COVID-19 still has a different symptom of gastrointestinal upset tract — diarrhea.
Important! The Ministry of Health predicts a sharp jump in the incidence of a new strain of Omicron coronavirus — approximately 1 million Ukrainians can get sick in February 2022 alone. Therefore, booster vaccination is now relevant and necessary for Ukrainians who have had six months since the last vaccination.