Tongue, mouth ulcers may be other symptoms of COVID-19, researcher says

Tim Spector, a professor of genetic epidemiology at King’s College London, says about 20% of people with COVID-19 are presenting with less common symptoms not cited by CDC and other public health entities. Symptoms that occur less frequently include a swollen or discolored tongue, mouth ulcers, and skin rashes. Spector, a researcher with the ZOE COVID Symptom Study that encourages people in the United Kingdom to report symptoms via an app, recently tweeted a photo of a 32-year-old man whose symptoms include macroglossia, or enlarged tongue. He says: “Yes the data from our ZOE symptom app suggests COVID tongue is real. But probably rare, affecting less than 1 in 100 people.” A report published in the British Journal of Dermatology comprising more than 600 COVID-19 patients in Spain identified “oral cavity” problems in about 12% of individuals, of whom roughly one-third presented with swollen or sore tongues. Spector believes his findings underscore that COVID-19 involves a wide variety of symptoms. He recently tweeted: “If you have a strange symptom or even just headache and fatigue stay at home!”