Don’t let these 4 “fake colds” confuse you, they’re dangerous!

Coughing, runny nose, sneezing... In the eyes of many people, these symptoms mean a cold and can be solved by taking some medicine. Little do people know that some medicines are not effective for these symptoms and may even make the condition worse. This is because the early symptoms of many diseases are quite similar to those of colds. If you self-diagnose without making a distinction, it is likely to delay the onset of the disease.

A flu

The common cold has an acute onset. Early symptoms include dry, itchy or burning throat, sneezing, nasal congestion, and runny nose. The runny nose starts out as clear water and becomes thicker after 2 to 3 days, and may be accompanied by sore throat. There is generally no fever or systemic symptoms, or only a low-grade fever and headache. If there is no concurrent bacterial infection, the disease can usually be cured in 5 to 7 days.

The main characteristics of influenza are sudden high fever, headache and discomfort, rarely abdominal pain, severe systemic symptoms and mild respiratory symptoms. Initially, symptoms may include chills and fever, with body temperature as high as 39°C to 40°C. At the same time, patients may experience headaches, body aches, weakness, and often dry eyes, dry throat, and mild sore throat.

Some patients may experience symptoms such as sneezing, runny nose, nasal congestion, dry cough, chest pain, and nausea. Gastrointestinal symptoms such as vomiting and diarrhea may sometimes be seen. It is caused by influenza virus, and the main measures include symptomatic treatment, antiviral treatment, and protection of susceptible groups.

2. Allergic rhinitis

Academician Zhong Nanshan of the Chinese Academy of Engineering once said that more than 70% of patients treat allergic rhinitis as a cold for a long time, which is often misdiagnosed and mistreated, missing the best time for treatment. Allergic rhinitis is the most common type of rhinitis, accounting for 40% of all rhinitis diseases.

Allergic rhinitis is often accompanied by symptoms such as nasal itching, sneezing, clear nasal discharge, nasal congestion, itchy eyes and corneal congestion. These symptoms are very similar to those of a cold, causing many people to mistakenly treat them as a cold when they are sick.

There are four main points to distinguish between a cold and allergic rhinitis. One is itchy nose: patients with allergic rhinitis will have very itchy nasal cavity and throat, and may also have itching in the eyes, ears, throat and other parts of the body; the main symptom of a cold is nasal congestion. The second is sneezing: One of the symptoms of allergic rhinitis is continuous sneezing; colds can also cause sneezing, but not more frequently.

The third is clear runny nose: Allergic rhinitis is accompanied by sneezing and a lot of runny nose; clear runny nose usually occurs in the early stages of a cold, but the amount is not large. Fourth, systemic symptoms: allergic rhinitis has no systemic symptoms; colds have systemic symptoms, such as general weakness, muscle aches, etc.

Pneumonia in children

In winter, many children are prone to catching colds. The common cold is not scary, what is scary is the complication of bronchopneumonia. Because the symptoms of the two are similar, some parents are accustomed to giving their children cold medicine according to the symptoms, and only send their children to the hospital when there is no improvement, which can easily delay the disease.

Symptoms of the common cold, such as sneezing, runny nose, coughing, and fever, last for three to five days in mild cases, while in severe cases they will gradually improve in about a week. If you find that your child's condition does not improve and he or she becomes listless, has no appetite, and has rapid breathing, you should consider the possibility of developing pneumonia.

For children under six months old, the number of breaths per minute should be between 30 and 40. If it exceeds 40 times or even reaches 50 times, parents should take the child to see a doctor immediately. For children around one year old, it is normal for the number of breaths to be around 30 times per minute. If it exceeds this number, the child may have pneumonia. The normal breathing rate for children over 1 year old is about twenty times per minute.

If there are symptoms of rapid respiratory rate, pediatric pneumonia should be considered. The specific time for a cold to develop into pneumonia is generally difficult to predict. In some cases, it may appear two or three days after the cold, while in others, it may change within a day. Parents and doctors should be highly vigilant.

IV. Viral myocarditis

Clinically, it is common for teenagers to have a "cold" for ten days or more, and no medicine works. It is not until the children suddenly feel palpitations and shortness of breath that their parents realize the seriousness of the problem. After being sent to the hospital, they are diagnosed with viral myocarditis.

The symptoms of viral myocarditis are similar to those of early or viral colds and diarrhea, followed by symptoms such as chest tightness, palpitations, shortness of breath, fatigue, etc. In severe cases, arrhythmias, heart failure, cardiogenic shock, and even sudden death may occur.

If you experience symptoms such as chest tightness, shortness of breath, palpitations, and fatigue in the early stages of a cold, you should go to the hospital for examination in time. If the electrocardiogram or biochemical tests show abnormalities, you should be vigilant to avoid missing the best time for treatment.

Although viral myocarditis has an acute onset, is highly dangerous, and has a high mortality rate, the prognosis is good if it receives timely and effective treatment. Moreover, viral infections are generally self-limiting. As long as you enhance your resistance and persist for about 10 to 14 days, the condition will generally improve.