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COVID-19 and Flu

COVID-19 and Flu what are the similarities and difference between the two in the symptoms and management. A simple infographic showing this.

Image showing two types of virus illustrations on the left you have red microscopic virus and on the right is one single green virus illustration

Like COVID-19 the flu is caused by a dangerous virus that kills thousands of people every year and hospitalises many more which also puts pressure on the health care system.

Flu passes from person to person and each year it causes varying complications especially during the winter months, which is when we see a rise in the number of flu cases and complications.

It is important therefore to understand the difference between COVID-19 and flu especially for patients, with many of the symptoms overlapping, it is difficult to clinically diagnose one over the other without a PCR test.

The following infographic developed by Rachel Eigbefoh, highlights the difference between COVID-19 and Flu as it currently stands (December 2020) – both viruses have the ability to mutate and can cause different side effects with each mutation.

The main difference in symptoms is that COVID-19 has the potential to cause loss of taste and/or smell, whereas flu can cause sneezing, blocked or runny nose.

Click to expand
^{© COVID-19 vs Flu infographic by Rachel, Eigbefoh, St George’s, University of London (November 2021)}

It is important to highlight to patients that any one person can be infected by both COVID-19 and flu at the same time which can increase their chances of becoming severely ill.