Find out what to know about long-term Covid in children – 07/02/2022 – Equilíbrio e Saúde

Although the infection rate among children is low, Long-Covid can affect them tooEven if they are immunized.

The syndrome is characterized by recurrent or persistent symptoms – headache, stomach pain or fatigue, for example, after a period of acute infection with the Coronavirus. The factors responsible for triggering the disease in recovered patients are still unknown.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Covid can appear in the long term three months after the onset of infection, with symptoms lasting at least two months and cannot be explained by an alternative diagnosis. The case acquired disease status in October 2021.

“In the The beginning of the pandemic, our focus was very much on the adults, who were the most exposed, the most infected, and those with severe symptoms. Over time, we are starting to see an increase in COVID cases among children, especially in 2021 and also Covid symptoms are long In this age group for children, says immunologist Ana Carolina Barreto Marinho, member of the scientific division of immunization at ASPI (Brazilian Society of Allergy and Immunology).

In the absence of examinations proving the length of Covid, parents should be aware of the small signs, including behavioral – if a child remains ill after a period of acute infection, or if they do not want to play or move as before.

With school holidays arriving, new cases of Covid-19 should drop, says pediatrician Ana Escobar, a professor at the University of the South Pacific School of Medicine.

“A month into the vacation, the kids at home will have less contact with others and more people will travel,” says the expert.

The recent increase in coronavirus infections is due to the transmissibility of the circulating sub-variants of the omicron and the low level of preventive measures.

“Although Covid presents a milder picture in children, Covid is Covid and we always have to be very careful. The disease has taught us one thing: we have to respect this virus. Pediatrician highlights.

Next, check out more information about COVID-19 in children.

In Covid Long, is there a predominant age group?
It can affect all ages. Pediatrician Ana Escobar explains it long hunger It depends more on the immune status of the child, the condition he has, the presence or absence of certain underlying diseases, such as pulmonary, rheumatic and chronic diseases – such as diabetes – immunodeficiency and neurological diseases. Children with chronic diseases are more likely to be infected.

According to Physician Anna Carolina, the latest data shows that they are children in the first two years of life until the age of 13 and 14. “It is important to emphasize that in very young children the diagnosis is more difficult, because the symptoms will not be the most classic, for older children who are able to communicate better,” says the immunologist.

Is the duration of Covid long in children and adults the same?
Children have some symptoms that last for 20 or 30 days and then go away, according to Ana Escobar. In adults, prolonged Covid can last for several months. They have more Loss of sense of smell and tasteHeadache, fatigue, memory loss and hair loss – this comes a little later and has been observed about two or three months after infection with the Covid virus.

How to determine whether symptoms are due to COVID-19 disease or re-infection with the coronavirus?
Re-infection can occur after four months covid diagnosis, because the rate of antibodies continues for this period. Pediatrician Ana Escobar explains: “It’s not uncommon to get infected again right away. In long-term Covid, instead of a group of symptoms, one or two persist at most.”

In Brazil, children under the age of five are not eligible for the Covid-19 vaccine. In that case, could they have severe, long-term Covid?
Unvaccinated people with no underlying diseases have less than 1% of [risco de] Go to the intensive care unit, confirms Ana Escobar. This means that COVID in children is more tolerant. In those vaccinated, this rate is lower due to protection from disease severity.

What takes a post-Covid child to the intensive care unit is Pediatric Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome (P-SIM), which can appear 15 days after infection with the Covid virus. A rare condition, the disease affects 1 in 3,000 children and young adults under the age of 21 with Covid. It is caused by an intense reaction of the immune system to try to fight off the coronavirus and can affect many vital organs, such as the heart. The death rate in Brazil is 6%, four times lower than in the United States.

Symptoms of SIM-P are high fever, headache, red spots on the skin, red eyes, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, low blood pressure, tachycardia, seizures, mental confusion and swollen lymph nodes, among others. .