Rita Wilson Details COVID-19 Battle, 'Extreme' Chloroquine Side Effects

Rita Wilson and Tom Hanks were among the first celebrities to come forward with their COVID-19 diagnosis. More than a month since the reveal, Wilson spoke to CBS This Morning host Gayle King on Tuesday (April 14) about her and Hanks' battle with the illness.

"I felt extremely achy, uncomfortable, didn’t want to be touched, and then the fever started," Wilson, 63, recalled of her initial symptoms. Unfortunately, that was just the beginning of her experience as she went on to feel unbearable chills, a loss of a sense of taste and smell and a rising temperature of 102. Soon after, Wilson was prescribed chloroquine, a drug that President Donald Trump has touted as treatment for the virus, but the star still has her reservations about the drug.

"I can only tell you that I don’t know if the drug worked or if it was just time for the fever to break," the star explained. "The fever did break, but the chloroquine had such extreme side effects I was completely nauseous and I had vertigo and my muscles felt very weak. I think people have to be very considerate about that drug. We don’t really know if it is helpful in this case."

As for Hanks, Wilson said that her husband had milder symptoms. "He did not have as high a fever. He did not lose his sense of taste or smell, but it still took us the same time to get through it," she added. The pair was told that they tested positive for COVID-19 after they were both exposed to the virus at the same time.

To keep up to date on the latest news about the coronavirus and to understand what you need to stay safe and healthy, check out the Coronavirus: Fact vs Fiction podcast from CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

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