Jeeezzzz... this ain't good.
What parents should know about the mysterious coronavirus-related disease affecting children: pediatric multisystem inflammatory syndrome
Health officials are investigating 102 cases in New York, where three children have died from the Kawasaki-like illness
Health officials are increasingly sounding the alarm on what could be a COVID-19-related illness in children that’s been reported in at least 14 states and five European countries.
The rare but possibly life-threatening condition, which is being called pediatric multisystem inflammatory syndrome, or PMIS, presents with symptoms that often differ from kid to kid, and can include fever, stomach pain and rashes, as well as red eyes, loss of appetite and lethargy. This is similar to what’s seen in Kawasaki disease, a rare inflammatory condition which tends to hit
one in 10,000 American children under five, as well as toxic shock syndrome, a complication from an infection that can include fever, low blood pressure, vomiting and rashes.
The New York State Department of Health is investigating more than 100 cases of this mysterious new malady, which is showing up in patients ranging from infants to 21-year-olds, Gov. Andrew Cuomo revealed on Wednesday. Three children in New York have died.
“It’s a wide array of symptoms, as you can see, which makes it even harder for parents to know exactly what they’re dealing with,” Cuomo said during his daily coronavirus presser.
“As a parent, I can tell you this is a parent’s worst nightmare, right?” Cuomo continued. “We thought that children were not specifically affected by the virus. To now find out they might be, and it might be several weeks later … this is truly disturbing.”
The CDC is also expected to issue an alert any time now that tells doctors to report cases of this to their state and local health departments,
Reuters reported. And Dr. Anthony Fauci mentioned it during his Senate testimony on Tuesday, describing the “children presenting with COVID-19 who actually have a very strange inflammatory syndrome.” He added, “I think we better be careful that we are not cavalier in thinking that children are completely immune to the deleterious effects (of the virus).’’