How to differentiate between monsoon fever and coronavirus symptoms

Medically Reviewed By
Dr. Ragiinii Sharma

Written By Srujana Mohanty
on Aug 27, 2022

Last Edit Made By Srujana Mohanty
on Jan 11, 2025

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Monsoon is undoubtedly the most pleasant weather everyone enjoys. Whether it's the wind or the heavy rains, everybody enjoys this weather in their own unique way. But apart from fun and joy, the monsoon also brings many monsoon-related ailments. Fever and cold are common in monsoon, but it is very important to get diagnosed with the right cause of fever as it can be due to multiple diseases, including COVID-19. In this article, let us know about the symptoms of monsoon-related ailments and coronavirus, which can help you differentiate between different diseases.

What is monsoon fever?

Monsoon is a season that is very highly associated with diseases and infections as well. Various diseases occur more commonly in the monsoon season. Thus, monsoon fever can be a result of different diseases. The major diseases that can lead to monsoon fever and their symptoms are listed below.

Dengue

Dengue is one of the most common causes of monsoon fever that lasts for around 7 days. It is a viral infection caused due to the dengue virus (DENV) and gets transmitted to humans through an infected mosquito bite. Dengue symptoms can be mild or severe depending on the severity of the infection. The mild dengue infection is characterised by symptoms like

Pain behind the eyes
Vomiting
Nausea
High fever which is around 40°C or 104°F
Pain in joints and muscles
Rashes
Swollen glands

The symptoms become more severe as the infection reaches the critical stage. This stage is a fatal complication. Thus, it is always advised that an early diagnosis can help you fight better with the disease. The major symptoms of the critical phase of dengue fever include:

Persistent vomiting
Severe pain in the abdomen
Bleeding nose or gums
Rapid breathing
Restlessness
Fatigue
Presence of blood in stool or vomit
Enlargement of the liver

Malaria

The occurrence of cases of malaria fever is common in monsoon. It is an infection caused by the parasite and spreads through an infected individual's bite. The most common symptoms of malaria fever are:

Chills
Fever
Headache
A feeling of discomfort
Diarrhoea
Vomiting
Nausea
Joint or muscle pain
Abdominal pain
Rapid breathing
Fatigue
Cough
Increased or rapid heart rate

Chikungunya

Chikungunya is also a viral disease that is transmitted through a mosquito bite. Currently, there is no proper cure for chikungunya available; therefore, the treatment of chikungunya infection depends on relieving the symptoms of the infection. The major symptoms of chikungunya infection are:

Fever that can be as high as 104°F,
Headache,
Joint pain,
Pain in the muscles,
Development of swelling around the joints,
Rashes,
Rarely you may also experience symptoms like vomiting, nausea, conjunctivitis, and maculopapular rashes.

Viral fever

The most common disease occurring during the monsoon season is viral fever. As soon as anyone coughs or sneezes during the monsoon season, the immediate diagnosis made by us is viral fever. It generally occurs due to the change in weather. It is a contagious infection and thus can spread from one person to another through the droplets released into the air. The fever generally lasts for around 3-7 days, wherein you will observe severe fever for the first three days of the infection. The general symptoms of viral infection are:

Fever with intermittent levels of rising and fall in temperature,
Dizziness,
Fatigue,
Chills,
Weakness,
Pain in the muscle, joint, and body,
Headache,
Painful tonsils,
Inflammation of the pharynx,
Running nose,
Chest and nasal congestion,
Burning sensation in eyes,
Sore throat,
Skin rashes,
Cough,
Vomiting,
Nausea,
Diarrhoea.

Common cold and flu

Common cold and flu are other very common causes of monsoon fever caused due to the sudden change in weather and temperature fluctuations that occur during the monsoon season. It is a very contagious disease that spreads rapidly to your upper respiratory tract. The major symptoms of common cold and flu include:

Sore throat,
Congestion,
Stuffy or runny nose,
Cough,
Sneezing,
Mild to severe body ache,
Headache,
A general feeling of unwell,
Low-grade fever.

Who doesn’t like to enjoy romantic weather like the monsoon? Enjoy the weather and make the most of it but stay cautious of the viral infection that spreads during this weather. With COVID-19 infection, it has become extremely difficult to differentiate between monsoon fever and coronavirus fever. Thus, it is essential that you get any viral-like symptoms diagnosed at an early stage so that timely treatment is provided to you for the control of the infection.

How do you differentiate between monsoon fever and coronavirus symptoms?

Ever since the coronavirus pandemic has hit the globe, anyone that sneezes or coughs makes everyone else surrounding him suspicious of COVID-19 infection. Although it is very important to be cautious of the spread of COVID-19, it is equally important that you are aware of the other diseases as well that can lead to monsoon fever. It is important to get the right cause of infection diagnosed as early as possible and to treat the infection the right way before it becomes severe or critical. But the question is how to differentiate between monsoon fever and coronavirus symptoms. Here is the table of common and easy-to-observe symptoms of monsoon fever and coronavirus that can help you diagnose different diseases effectively.

Symptoms	COVID-19	Seasonal flu	Common cold	Viral fever	Malaria	Chikungunya	Dengue
Fever	Common	Common	Rare	Common	High fever	High fever	Sudden high fever
Dry cough	Common	Common	Mild	-	-	-	-
Breathlessness/ Shortness of breath	Common	No	No	-	-	-	-
Headache	Sometimes	Common	Rare	-	-	-	Yes
Aches and pains	Sometimes	Common	Common	Muscle, joint, and body pain	Body ache	Acute pain in the abdomen, back of the eyes, joints, and muscles	Pain typically behind the eyes, joints, muscles, or bone.
Sore throat	Sometimes	Common	Common	-	-	-	-
Fatigue	Sometimes	Common	Sometimes	Yes	-	Yes	Yes
Diarrhoea	Rare	Sometimes	No	-	Yes	-	-
Runny nose	Rare	Sometimes	Common	-	-	-	-
Sneezing	No	No	Common	-	-	-	-

How to prevent monsoon related ailments?

As rightly said, “Prevention is better than cure”. Therefore, you must take measures to protect yourself and your loved ones from monsoon fever. Here are certain steps that you can take to prevent monsoon fever:

Try keeping yourself away from mosquitos.
Apply mosquito repellent cream and wear full-sleeved clothes whenever you step out of your house.
Avoid stepping out of your house.
Use a face mask and sanitiser wherever required.
Consume freshly prepared homemade food and boiled water.
Always wash your hands before you eat.
Avoid being your own doctor and consult a specialist in case you have a fever.

Takeaway

In India, we are blessed to enjoy four different seasons in a year. Monsoon brings with it a lot of joy as it saves you from the extreme heat of the summer. But along with the pleasant weather, the constant temperature changes and mosquitos, quite common during the monsoon days, are the major cause of various monsoon-related diseases. Hever, cold, and cough are some common symptoms that you often experience during the monsoon. In the last 2 years, with the COVID-19 pandemic, these symptoms have become worrisome and have made us cautious. Fever is a common symptom in both COVID-19 and monsoon-related ailments as well. Therefore, it is very important to know the exact cause of the fever so that it can be treated accordingly. Now that you know the different reasons for monsoon fever and how you can differentiate it from COVID-19, you will be better able to analyse your condition and consult the doctor when required. During the monsoon season, it is better that you take good care of yourself and take measures to prevent monsoon fever.