Signs that you might need a hospital:
The signs you may need to visit a hospital for COVID-19 are similar to those that should lead to an emergency visit for just about any bad illness or condition.
These include:
- Breathing problems,
- Persistent chest pain or pressure
- Dizziness, confusion, fever above 39 °C, continuous cough
- Inability to wake up or stay awake
- Pale, grey or blue skin, lips or nail beds, depending on the skin tone
If you notice that it is getting harder and harder to breathe while you are doing your normal routines, you should go to the hospitall.
This includes shortness of breath, heavy breathing, cold skin, noisy breathing as if fermenting something, and cold sweats or feeling faint.
One tool I recommend you keep at home is a pulse oximeter, so you can measure and monitor your oxygen saturation levels, heart rate, and number of breaths per minute. If the oxygen level in the blood drops below 90%-85% for more than five minutes, and especially during exercise/physical effort then it is recommended to go to the hospital.
Dehydration is another reason to go to the emergency room; if you are unable to maintain fluids due to diarrhea and vomiting, you may become severely dehydrated and need to visit the hospital for intravenous fluids.
Similarly to fevers above 39 °C, chills and continuous coughing can cause major discomfort, especially for children and the elderly with comorbidities.
