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ch1LL24 t1_j9alsk4 wrote

No, variable effects like that are not unique to Covid. The individual's specific biological situation, how they contracted the virus, and luck of the draw cause each infection to be somewhat idiosyncratic in most viruses. /u/redligand already has some good examples. I'll throw in Polio, which is known for its devastating paralytic effects but was also asymptomatic in 70% of children that contracted it. source

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SvartSol t1_j9c0mg6 wrote

Even the same body can react differently to the same virus. Diet and stress among others.

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Krail t1_j9d1kpm wrote

There are also multiple different "diseases" that are all caused by the same infectious agent (virus, bacteria, etc.). They just present completely different symptoms depending on various conditions such as the patient's age, how the infection occurred, etc.

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[deleted] t1_j9cxhpe wrote

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[deleted] t1_j9b0lfk wrote

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[deleted] t1_j9b6k4w wrote

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[deleted] t1_j9b6ny9 wrote

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LearningIsTheBest t1_j9cnu05 wrote

> how they contracted the virus

I've read some articles which suggest a minimal or passing exposure tends to result in a less severe COVID infection and heavy exposure (e.g. a car ride) is correlated with more severe cases.

IIs there a definitive study on that? Just curious if you've read anything with good numbers.

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yt271828 t1_j9cpys7 wrote

Yes, look up papers on "viral load" for correlations between concentration of exposure and severity of infection.

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Brittainicus t1_j9dt5q3 wrote

The general idea is if you get exposed to a lower viral load, you have less virus particles in your body which gives your immune system more time to find and destroy the virus before it multiplies to the point it can start doing noticeably damage.

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LearningIsTheBest t1_j9du6au wrote

That always made sense to me intuitively. I just didn't want to take intuition as fact. I also haven't seen solid numbers yet. My main concern at this point is long COVID and that seems completely random so far.

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PyrocumulusLightning t1_j9h4sqr wrote

Does this mean if one person contracts COVID from a brief contact but gives it to someone who lives with them and is constantly exposed, the second person is likely to have a more severe case?

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