Pages

Friday 20 August 2021

COVID strikes kids: Pediatric hospitalizations have risen by 32% in six months with 2,000 now being treated amid fierce debate over masks in schools

 As schools across the country re-open amid a fierce debate over mask mandates, the US is seeing a troubling surge in pediatric COVID-19 hospitalizations. 

More than 121,000 kids tested positive for the virus last week, according to a new report from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).

That is a 29 percent increase over the figure of nearly 94,000 from the previous week, signaling a worrying trend as the fall semester approaches.  

The rise in cases among children comes as the highly contagious delta variant continues to spread across the US but children are left particularly vulnerable because many are too young to get the vaccine, which is available only to those 12 and over.

Children are left particularly vulnerable to Covid because many are too young to get the vaccine, which is available only to those 12 and over

More than 121,000 kids tested positive for the virus last week, according to a new report from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)

More than 121,000 kids tested positive for the virus last week, according to a new report from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)

More than 121,000 kids tested positive for the virus last week as kids prepare to return to school for the fall semester

More than 121,000 kids tested positive for the virus last week as kids prepare to return to school for the fall semester

The surging virus is spreading anxiety and causing turmoil and infighting among parents, administrators and politicians around the US, especially in states like Florida and Texas, where Republican governors have barred schools from making youngsters wear masks, AP reported. 

With millions of children returning to classrooms this month, experts say the stakes are unquestionably high. 


Dr Buddy Creech, a Vanderbilt University infectious disease specialist told the AP very high infection rates in the community 'are really causing our children's hospitals to feel the squeeze,' 

Dr Creech, who is helping lead research on Moderna's vaccine for children under 12, said those shots probably won't be available for several months.

While pediatric COVID-19 hospitalization rates are lower than those for adults, they have surged in recent weeks, reaching 0.41 per 100,000 children ages 0 to 17, compared with 0.31 per 100,000, the previous high set in mid-January, according to an Aug. 13 report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In total, there have been around 4.4 million pediatric Covid cases since the start of the pandemic in March 2020.

However, the infections are rarely fatal with just 0.01 percent, or 379, resulting in death, an increase of eight from the week before.

Dr. Francis Collins, head of the National Institutes of Health, said the the spike in cases among children is 'very worrisome.'

He noted that over 400 U.S. children have died of COVID-19 since the pandemic began. 'And right now we have almost 2,000 kids in the hospital, many of them in ICU, some of them under the age of 4,' Collins told Fox News on Sunday.

Health experts believe adults who have not gotten their shots are contributing to the surge among grownups and children alike. It has been especially bad in places with lower vaccination rates, such as parts of the South.   

The AAP reports that children make up around 18 percent of COVID-19 cases in the last week, and 14.4 percent of cases since the pandemic started.

In Vermont, kids make up 23 percent of total cases, the most of any state.

In Alaska, 21 percent of cases are children, also has an abnormally larger share of cases among children.

Florida (nine percent) is the only state where children make up less than 10 percent of total cases.

While many believe children are safe from the virus - as they are less likely to be hospitalized or die from it - some children do still end up suffering severe complications.

Around one percent of child COVID-19 cases require hospitalization, per the AAP, and the youth make up around two percent of people hospitalized because of the virus.

Even when kids don't suffer from a severe case, there is potential for children to suffer some conditions long-term like 'long Covid or myocarditis.

Children infected with the virus can also spread the virus to parents, teachers, staff and others.   

The delta surge is yet another test for the nation's schools, which are dealing with students who fell behind academically as a result of remote learning or developed mental health problems from the upheaval. 

Outbreaks have already occurred at reopened schools in the South that are facing resistance to mask-wearing, AP reported.   

In Texas, some school administrators are mandating masks in defiance of the governor and state Supreme Court. Among them is Michael Hinojosa of the Dallas school system, one of the state's largest districts.

'This delta variant is different, and the numbers are really significant in the county,' he told AP. 'We're going to continue our mask mandate to keep students safe, to keep parents safe, to keep families safe and most importantly our teachers, who are on those front lines.' 

No comments:

Post a Comment