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Coronavirus rarely kills children, but minorities are at higher risk

2020-09-16T17:29:02.375Z


Children and teens from minority groups are disproportionately affected by the coronavirus, according to the CDC.


Why do children get less sick from covid-19?

29:12

(CNN) -

Children and teens from minority groups are disproportionately affected by the coronavirus, as are older adults.

This according to findings of a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the United States (CDC).

Ethnic and racial minority children, those with underlying health problems, and young people between the ages of 18 and 20 are more likely to die.

This was established by a research team led by the CDC.

The study was published Tuesday in the agency's Weekly Morbidity and Mortality Report.

The report also showed how unusual it is for children and young adults to die from the coronavirus.

Among the 190,000 deaths recorded in the country, only 0.08%, or 121, were reported in those under 21 years of age.

The most up-to-date CDC report shows that 377 children, adolescents and young adults up to 24 years old have died from coronavirus.

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Coronavirus and children: the investigation

The researchers asked 50 states, New York City, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands to submit information on coronavirus deaths in those under 21 years of age.

Forty-seven jurisdictions reported information from February 12 to July 31.

Among the approximately 6.5 million cases of covid-19 in the country, researchers found a total of 391,814 cases of covid-19 and MIS-C in children under 21 years of age.

While people under the age of 21 make up 26% of the US population, only 8% of all reported cases.

The risk of coronavirus in minority children

Hispanics, Blacks, and American Indians / Alaska Natives were disproportionately affected.

A total of 44% of the 121 who died were Hispanic children, 29% were black children, 4% were American Indian / Alaska Native, and 4% were Asian or Pacific Islander.

While these groups represent 41% of the US population under 21 years of age, they accounted for approximately 75% of deaths in that age range.

Fourteen percent of the deaths were of white children.


Infants, children, adolescents and young adults, particularly those belonging to racial and ethnic minority groups most at risk, those with underlying medical conditions and their caregivers, need clear covid-19 prevention messages, consistent and developmentally, language, and culturally appropriate, ”the researchers wrote.

Deaths in children from coronavirus

While 25% of the deaths occurred in previously healthy children, 75% had at least one underlying health condition and 45% had two or more.

The most frequently reported medical conditions were chronic lung disease, including asthma;

obesity;

neurological and developmental conditions and cardiovascular conditions.

The breakdown between the different age groups varied substantially, with those in the younger age groups performing better than adolescents and young adults.

Approximately 10% of deaths occurred in infants less than 1 year old, an additional 9% were in children between 1 and 4 years old, with another 11% in the range of 5-9 and 10% in the range of 10- 13.

But almost 20% of the deaths were seen in adolescents between 14 and 17 years old and more than 40% in young people between 18 and 20 years old.

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The possibilities of affecting children

This is somewhat in line with previous statistics from the CDC that found that children ages 0 to 4 are four times less likely to be hospitalized.

This same population is nine times less likely to die than those aged 18 to 29.

And those ages 5 to 17 are nine times less likely to be hospitalized and 16 times less likely to die than people ages 18 to 29.

Boys fared worse than girls: men accounted for 63% of deaths compared to 37% of women.

Although it is reassuring that children are less likely to become seriously ill and die, they can still become infected and transmit SARS-CoV-2 to other people, according to numerous studies.

In a study published last week in the MMWR, researchers analyzed contact tracing data from 184 people with ties to three child care centers in Salt Lake County from April to July.

Children are still transmitters of covid-19

At least two children who had no symptoms not only contracted the virus, but passed it on to other people, including a mother who was hospitalized.

That study reported that an eight-month-old baby infected both parents.

“The infected children exposed in these three facilities had little or no symptoms.

It is likely that two out of three asymptomatic children transmitted SARS-CoV-2 to their parents and possibly their teachers, ”the Salt Lake County Health Department researchers wrote in their report.

Another study carried out in South Korea analyzed data from 91 asymptomatic, presymptomatic and symptomatic children diagnosed with covid-19 between February 18 and March 31 in 22 centers in that country.

It found that 22% of the children were asymptomatic.

The study was published in late August in JAMA Pediatrics.

'This highlights the concept that infected children are more likely to go unnoticed with or without symptoms and to continue their usual activities.

This can contribute to viral circulation within your community, ”wrote two physicians at Children's National Hospital in Washington, in an accompanying editorial.

The CDC researchers of the current study said it is important to closely monitor children infected with COVID-19.

“Although infants, children and adolescents are more likely to have milder COVID-19 disease than adults, complications such as MIS-C and respiratory failure occur in these populations.

People infected with or exposed to SARS-CoV-2 should be closely followed so that clinical deterioration can be detected early, ”they wrote.

- Jacqueline Howard, Sandee Lamotte, and Lauren Mascarenhas contributed to this report.

covid-19

Source: cnnespanol

All news articles on 2020-09-16

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