Colds, known as upper respiratory tract infections, are overwhelmingly caused by viral infections. The main symptom is a fever, which may be low or even absent, accompanied by respiratory symptoms such as cough, sore throat, malaise, sneezing, and runny nose. The early stage of novel coronavirus pneumonia is similar to a cold, and also has symptoms such as low fever, cough, malaise, sore throat, and itchy throat. However, compared to the cold, the cicatricial symptoms such as sneezing and runny nose are less frequent in novel coronavirus pneumonia, and sneezing and runny nose are more often seen in the cold. The first week of novel coronavirus pneumonia is similar to a cold and can be easily misdiagnosed, but after a week the symptoms begin to worsen significantly, such as cough and fever that are worse than before. Some patients with severe disease even develop shortness of breath after activity, and if further developed, they may feel chest tightness and shortness of breath even in a quiet state. Patients with critical illness may have difficulty in breathing, breath-holding, or even irritability and impaired consciousness, and may need to be treated in an intensive care unit. In contrast, the common cold usually starts to improve significantly in 5-7 days, so if the symptoms remain aggravated in 5-7 days, you need to go to the hospital and ask your doctor to evaluate to exclude infection with the new coronavirus pneumonia. Content source: Dr. You Lai