Five pundits to take the pen.
The president of the Royal College of Pediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) and four other experts reacted late Saturday afternoon in a joint statement, denying any sharp increase in the number of children hospitalized in the UK at cause of Covid-19.
“Right now, we don't see significant pressure [from the epidemic] in pediatrics,” Russell Viner said.
"It is important to make it clear that we are not seeing a national wave of illnesses induced by Covid-19 in children," added Dr Damian Roland, pediatrician at Leicester University Hospitals.
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The day before, the BBC had published the alarming testimony of a head nurse at the London hospital, Laura Duffel.
The Covid "affected children very little in the first wave, but we have a whole children's room here and I know that some of my colleagues are in the same situation," she said, deeming the situation "scary".
🗣️ "It was minimally affecting children in the first wave ... we now have a whole ward of children here."
Laura Duffel, a matron in a London Hospital, tells Adrian Chiles about the Covid situation in hospitals.
📻 @BBCSounds pic.twitter.com/2BwYOJvov5
- BBC Radio 5 Live (@ bbc5live) January 1, 2021
The sound extract, widely shared on social networks, was also included in press articles titled on an "increase" in hospitalizations of young patients.
2,859 hospitalizations on December 29, including 37 minors
A glance at the figures, which the Parisian has compiled, rather gives reason to the pediatricians who reacted in a very firm way.
On December 29, 22 children aged 5 and under and fifteen others aged 6 to 17 were admitted to hospital due to Covid in England.
This is very little compared to the total number of 2,859 hospitalizations reported that day, according to data from the British health services.
Among the little ones, there has been an increase since the beginning of December, but on low figures.
On average over the past week, the daily number of hospitalizations has increased from 7 to 19 in three weeks.
We are still at a level 50% higher than the maximum reached during the first wave (12.5 daily hospitalizations on average from April 1 to 7).
Among 6-17 year olds, this number remained roughly stable over the same period of December, going from 13 to 15 per day on average.
By Friday, many doctors had already been moved by the testimony of the London nurse.
“This is just not true, and irresponsible.
[…] The Covid is rife in hospitals, but not in children, ”wrote Ronny Cheung, pediatrician at Evelina Children's Hospital in London.
I've been the on call consultant in a london children's hospital this week - this is simply not true, and irresponsible in the extreme - frightens parents, fuels covid-deniers.
Covid is rife in hospitals, but not among children.
We have enough to deal with without this garbage.
https://t.co/kXZaHgpK2U
- Ronny Cheung (@CheungRonny) January 2, 2021
On Twitter, Laure Duffel defended herself from any catastrophism on Friday, with an account that seems to be authentic.
“I'm not trying to scare people.
But people should know that this wave is not restricted to the older generations, ”she wrote in response to a user.
I'm not trying to scare people.
But people should know that this wave is not isolated to the older generation.
If I save a single life through making people think twice before mixing with others surely it is worth sharing what we are dealing with day in day out in hospitals
- Laura Duffell (@DuffellLaura) January 1, 2021
Fears due to the variant
It is true that the incidence rate (the number of cases per 100,000 inhabitants over the past week) has sharply increased in children, even if it remains much lower than in other age groups.
In the London area, for example, it now exceeds 300 among the under-5s, compared to 80 three weeks earlier.
And the variant of the virus, which appeared in September in the United Kingdom and more transmissible according to several studies, would spread more among those under 20 than in the rest of the population, according to a study by Imperial college in London published this Thursday.
UPDATE # COVID19 new variant VOC202012 / 01 in England
➡️VOC growing rapidly
➡️Transmission advantage for VOC of 0.4 to 0.7 difference in reproduction number compared to non-VOC variant
➡️VOC affecting a greater proportion of under 20s
👉Report https: // t. co / wZkdw9fCIj pic.twitter.com/YlffZnyPMl
- MRC Center for Global Infectious Disease Analysis (@MRC_Outbreak) December 31, 2020
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However, more positive cases does not necessarily mean more hospital admissions in the same proportions.
"The overwhelming majority of children and young people have no symptoms or only very mild illness," recalled the president of the Royal College of Pediatrics and Childhood Health.
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Conversely, 60% of those admitted to hospital on December 29 were at least 65 years old.
While three-quarters of the British population have been re-confined since Thursday, Dr Liz Whittaker, a pediatrician at London's St Mary's Hospital, insisted: “I continue to worry about my elders, not my children.
"