Difference between COVID-19 and Influenza: Explained

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COVID-19 & influenza – Transmission

Now, there are plenty of similarities when it comes to the way each of these diseases spreads. Both are highly contagious and can be transmitted from person to person contact. However, there have been some recent significant transmission trends governing the difference between coronavirus and influenza.

Here, we present the similarities and contrast between the two in the following table.

How to understand if your symptoms are of COVID-19 or influenza?

The acute similarity between symptoms of COVID-19 and influenza can often make it difficult for individuals to differentiate one from the other in the early stages. Unfortunately, this also reinforces the fact that there is no sure way to understand the difference between COVID-19 and influenza except medical diagnosis. However, here is a chart with a brief overview of the various possible symptoms and their severity in each disease.

What are the different treatment options available for COVID-19 and influenza?

Although influenza viruses have been around for a long while and SARS-CoV-2 is a brand new virus, both are constantly evolving as new strains, and sub-strains are detected.

However, the major difference between the cure for COVID-19 and influenza is that the latter can be treated with already available FDA-approved medications and vaccines.

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the novel coronavirus as scientists and doctors continue to treat critical patients with trial drugs.

Here are all the modes of treatment available for both diseases to date.

Details of the causative agent	COVID-19	Influenza
Virus family	Coronaviridae	Orthomyxoviridae
Virus type	SARS-CoV-2	Human influenza A and B

Transmission factors	COVID-19	Influenza
Mode of transmission	Droplet-borne through talking, coughing, and sneezing, Touching your face after touching a contaminated surface	Droplet-borne through talking, coughing, and sneezing, Touching your face after touching a contaminated surface
Maximum transmissible distance	6 feet	6 feet
Pre-symptomatic transmission	24-48 hours prior to the onset of symptoms	Within 3-5 days of infection
Incubation period	2-5 days, some patients can also remain asymptomatic for up to 14 days	1-3 days
Serial interval (the period between 2 successive cases)	5-6 days	3 days
Reproductive number	5.7	0.9-2.1
Commonly affected age groups	Adults (60+ years), individuals with underlying health conditions, individuals aged below 20 years are mostly asymptomatic carriers	Children (0-17 years), pregnant women, individuals with weak immunity or pre-existing ailments, the elderly
Attack rate	12.4% in adults aged 60+ years among households contacts	9.3% in children, 8.9% in adults aged 18-64 years, 3.9% in adults ages 65+ years
Mortality rate	First observed to be 3.4%, then decreased to 1.0%-0.9%	Less than 0.1%
Pandemic probability	SARS-CoV-2 has already caused a pandemic since it is new to our immune systems and has no existing treatment	Evolving zoonotic subtypes of influenza strains can lead to a new pandemic

Symptoms	COVID-19	Influenza
Cough	Severe, dry, and persistent coughs that can cause shortness of breath	Mild, dry coughs
Fever	For 3-4 days	2-7 days
Breathing problem	Very prominent, can be severe	Mildly possible
Sore throat	Very prominent	Possible
Fatigue and weakness	Prominent gradually	Prominent from the beginning
Repeated shaking with chills	Possible	Rare
Muscle aches	Possible	Prominent, can be severe
Runny nose or blocked nasal passage	Common	Possible
Headache	Common	Prominent
Nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea	Common	Common
Brain fog	Possible	Rare
Unique symptoms	Sudden change in or lack of smell and taste, Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome (MIS-C) in children	None
Complications	Fatal Pneumonia, Microvascular thrombosis of the toes, Blood clots in arteries and veins of lungs, heart, or brain	Curable pneumonia

Treatment options	COVID-19	Influenza
Antiviral drugs	Phase 3 trial drug , 1) Remdesivir	FDA-approved drugs Baloxavir marboxil (Xofluza) 1) Zanamivir (Relenza), 2) Peramivir (Rapivab), 3) Oseltamivir phosphate (Tamiflu)
Vaccines	Phase 3 trial vaccines - 1) Covishield, 2) Covaxin, 3) Pfizer, 4) Moderna, 5) Sputnik V	FDA-approved vaccines - 1) Inactivated influenza vaccines (IIV), 2) Live attenuated influenza vaccines (LAIV)
Others	Convalescent plasma therapy	None

Analysing your health details

Difference between COVID-19 and Influenza

Which virus families cause COVID-19 and influenza?

COVID-19 & influenza – Transmission

How to understand if your symptoms are of COVID-19 or influenza?

What are the different treatment options available for COVID-19 and influenza?

Is it important to get the flu shot during the ongoing pandemic?

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you show symptoms for both influenza and COVID-19 simultaneously?

Does the flu vaccine protect me from catching the novel coronavirus?

Why is Covid-19 considered more dangerous than an influenza affliction?

Can I develop COVID-19 from influenza?

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