so there hasn't been that much media coverage about Covid 19 and children
and one of the reasons is because Covid 19 is less prevalent and less severe and
children the case fatality rate of covid in the pediatric population is also less
compared to the adult population as a result there are many misconceptions about covid and children
so in this video let's break down what we do know and I'll try to
best answer some of the most commonly asked questions when it comes to covid in children
our children immune to covid 19 no they're not immune and this is why states have shut
down schools children do have a relatively lower chance of getting covered compared
to adults while about 22% of the United States population are children less than the age of 18
only about 2% of patients with kovat infection are children about 90% of cases are the results
of household and community exposure the other 10% are cases that are associated with travel
in most cases symptoms of children with covid are similar to those of adults which includes
fever cough shortness of breath nasal congestion or runny nose sore throat nausea vomiting diarrhea
fatigue headache body aches meaning myalgias and poor feeding or low appetite however children are
less likely to present with typical Kovach symptoms and one CDC report 73 percent of
pediatric patients had symptoms of fever cough or shortness of breath and this is compared with 93
percent of adults between the ages of 18 and 64 who had these same symptoms during the same time
most of the children with kovat were asymptomatic or had mild or moderate symptoms in a large study
of over 2,100 pediatric patients in China the data showed about four percent of patients who
are asymptomatic meaning they had no clinical symptoms they also had normal chest imaging
meaning a normal chest x-ray about 51 percent had mild symptoms so this includes fever cough fatigue
myalgias about 39 percent had moderate symptoms and there including things like pneumonia on the
chest x-ray five percent of cases were severe meaning they had shortness of breath low oxygen
levels some even had cyanosis meaning bluish or purplish tint of the lips the face less than 1%
of cases were critically ill meaning they had either acute respiratory distress syndrome
ARDS or shock or respiratory failure and/or heart failure or kidney failure there are symptoms and
complications of covid that are more specific to children one of the more severe complications
is something called multi-system inflammatory syndrome or Mis so Mis C C stands for children
so Mis C could present with persistent fever inflammation and evidence of single or multi
organ dysfunction like shock respiratory failure cardiac failure kidney failure some children with
Mis C may present with symptoms of Kawasaki disease and this includes things like fevers
red eye body rashes a sore throat swollen hands and feet swollen lymph nodes in the neck red and
dry cracked lips and a strawberry tongue while the links between covid and mis see are unclear
and are generally rare dozens of children in New York City in Europe have been identified with Mis
see since the beginning of the covid pandemic and three deaths have occurred in New York City
in a statistical study done at Children's National Hospital in Washington DC researchers found some
interesting patterns of covid 19 infections and children for one infants that were less than 12
months and then older children and this included the age 15 to 25 were more likely to require
hospitalization also these older children and young adults were most likely to receive critical
care okay number two children with Covid were more likely to have underlying conditions the most
common was asthma however children with asthma don't have a higher risk of hospitalization or
being critically ill children with underlying neurologic cardiac hematologic in oncologic
diagnosis were more likely to be hospitalized still these underlying conditions didn't make
children more likely to be critically ill number three the only symptom that is more common and
hospitalized versus not hospitalized pediatric patients is shortness of breath and contrast
minor symptoms like runny nose sore throat cough headache all these are more common in non
hospitalized patients compared to the hospitalized once the data makes sense since respiratory
support is a primary reason that patients with covid require hospitalization okay number four
94% of pediatric patients with covid don't have co-infection with other viruses or bacteria so
of the six percent who had a co infection it was usually with enterovirus or Rhino virus
there's been no evidence of vertical transmission or direct transmission of the virus through blood
from Covid 19 positive mothers to their babies there's also been limited evidence that mothers
with confirmed covid infection can transmit the infection to their infants through the breast milk
however the mother can still pass on the virus to the infants after delivery through respiratory
droplets the CDC recommends PCR testing for infants of women with suspected or confirmed Covid 19
the CDC also recommends physical separations of infant's for mothers with confirmed Covid 19 at the
time of birth if Covid 19 positive mother's wish to breastfeed or have skin-to-skin contact with
their infants they should wear face coverings in practice hand hygiene children younger than
two years of age should not wear face coverings as this puts them at higher risk of suffocation
testing strategies including testing criteria and specimen types are mostly identical for children
and adults except for neonates according to the CDC so children who have symptoms and fall into
any of the following groups should be tested number one if they have an underlying condition
that may increase the risk for severe disease such as congenital heart disease and other heart
disease asthma and immuno compromising condition like HIV former preterm infants in neuromuscular
disease with dysfunctional airway clearance poorly controlled type 1 diabetes and severe obesity okay
the second category number two known physical contact with patients who had confirmed covid
within the past 14 days okay the third category if they present with severe illness like if they have
a new requirement for supplemental oxygen okay the fourth category if they're currently hospitalized
except for neonates in a neonatal intensive care unit whose mothers are negative for covid children
who have confirmed covid 19 through lab testing can be managed at home if they
are asymptomatic or have mild to moderate symptoms and they don't have an underlying
medical condition that warrants them being in the hospital measures for parents whose children
with positive Covid 19 status this can involve one separating children with covid from other
family members who don't have Covid ideally the affected children should have a separate
room in isolated bathroom if possible parents should also limit visitors to the house okay the
second thing is notify the pediatrician before the visits which will help the pediatrician to
better prepare for their visit the third thing is keep Covid 19 positive family members away
from pets in the household also avoid sharing personal household items like dishes cups
utensils towels pillows caretakers should wash these items with water and soap after affected
children use them okay the fourth thing is clean all high-touch objects and surfaces including
counters doorknobs bathroom fixtures toilets phones keyboards the mouse on the computer
tablets whatever use a household cleaning spray or wipes according to instructions on the label
okay the fifth thing is if the symptoms or the conditions worsen call your pediatrician right
away some of these warning signs include things like shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
chest pain having blue or purplish lips or face and findings that are suggestive of shock such as
cold and clammy skin confusion or if the child is feeling very lethargic so all children who
have severe or critical symptoms are going to require hospitalization in supportive therapy
like supplemental oxygen patients with Mis C may require specialists doctors from pediatric
infectious-disease Rheumatology cardiology and critical care to manage the complex symptoms
they exhibit and of course if you're not sure a phone call to the pediatrician is the best thing
hand-washing with soap and water for at least 20 seconds hand sanitizer with an
alcohol content greater than 60% is also useful however it should be noted that hand sanitizers
should be out of reach of small children as the ingestion of even small amounts of liquid hand
sanitizers with the high alcohol content can make children sick so practice social
distancing which means no playdates avoiding team sports like baseball in avoiding birthday
parties with large gatherings children older than two should also wear face coverings if
they have to encounter other people such as the doctor's office or grocery stores teach
your children to cough and sneeze into a tissue or if they don't have a tissue available into
the inner elbow that way they're not spreading the germs wash stuffed animals or plush toys
according to the manufacturer's instructions in the hottest water possible before drying
them completely clean and disinfect surfaces and objects at home using household cleaning
sprays or wipes if possible teach your children to avoid touching their face especially if they have
dirty hands follow state and federal guidance on traveling and stay at home restrictions
so while children with moderate and severe asthma are at higher risk for more severe
symptoms if they do get covid there's not enough evidence that asthma alone increases the risk of
contracting covid infection children with asthma should continue their medications regardless of
covid because having good asthma control minimizes the chance of an asthma exacerbation
and there is no evidence that asthma medications can worsen the course of covid infection
so children younger than the age of two years old especially those receiving vaccinations should
continue to visit their pediatricians office for their routine physicals and vaccinations
parents of children older than two years old can ask their pediatricians office whether a
phone or an Internet appointment can substitute for a physical appointment for children over the
age of two years old who have to visit their pediatricians office physically
they should wear a face covering to minimize the exposure to the virus
most children who contract covid recover completely without any severe consequences
very few children will go on to develop Mis C or require hospitalization the case fatality
rate for children who contracted covid was lower than 1% the latest data from
the CDC as at the time of this video was back in late May and it showed that there
have been 12 deaths due to covid so far and children younger than 14 years old in the
United States the data also shows that there are 76 deaths due to covid in the
age bracket of 15 to 24 so this is much much lower compared to older populations also the
younger the age the more likely to have a better outcome if someone does have coded
so of course has been a lot of news coverage about covid 19 which can be frightening and
overwhelming for both parents and children the American Academy of Pediatrics has provided the
following tips for parents to provide excellent communication between parents and their children
through this challenging period the first thing is simple reassurance let your kids know that
many people such as doctors and scientists are doing as much as they can to keep everyone safe
from covid the second thing is give kids the feeling of having control remind your children
that there are things that they can do to help such as washing their hands coughing into their
sleeves and elbow practicing social distancing and getting enough sleep and wearing masks if they're
aged 2 and above the third thing is to monitor signs of anxiety children may not express their
worrying thoughts verbally but they might do it through different behaviors such as getting
fussier clingy er having trouble sleeping or seem more distracted trying to reassure them
and having a regular daily routine can help them through this difficult time the fourth thing is
to monitor maybe exposure and interpretations keep younger kids away from frightening images
on TV and the Internet for older children discuss together what they hear from the news
in social media while correcting misinformation and rumors they may hear but just for the record
if anyone's watching this channel know that there will be no medical misinformation the
fifth thing is be a good role model children imitate adults around them and your actions
and behaviors are more effective than actual words so hand-washing using hand sanitizers not
touching your face with food or dirty hands and being kind to others and wearing a mask if they
are older than two years of age that's good so thanks for watching this video there are
so many topics I want to cover on covid and other medical topics as well so subscribe to
this channel click on the bell so you get notified but when I make my next one and I'll see you then