Is the big corona wave coming among the children now?
Some parents are already dreading the coming autumn and winter months.
How great is the danger?
And how to deal with it?
Munich - More than half of Germans are vaccinated against the corona virus and are therefore well protected from falling seriously ill.
But one section of the population is further out: children under 12 years of age.
And although life is picking up speed again, a lot is possible.
Many parents are therefore worried about the months ahead.
Is the fourth wave of coronavirus mainly rolling through schools and daycare centers?
And: Is a so-called infection of the children accepted here?
We worked with Prof. Johannes Hübner, pediatric infectiologist in the Pediatric Infectiology Department at Dr.
von Haunersche Children's Hospital in Munich, talked about it.
Mr. Huebner, what does the latest research show? How sick does SARS-CoV-2 make children? And does the Delta variant make you sicker?
Hübner:
We still cannot see any differences between the different variants.
All are more contagious than the wild-type virus, but this is equally true for all age groups.
Whether alpha or delta, the conclusion is the same: Children are usually asymptomatic * or very mild, severe courses are very rare, deaths are an absolute rarity.
Almost all children who died had underlying illnesses.
Corona in children: Long Covid and PIMS very rare
But some children develop PIMS (Pediatric Inflammatory Multiorgan Syndrome) ...
Hübner:
Yes, that is clearly an issue.
We know PIMS or similar clinical pictures as an excessive immune reaction to an infection in many viruses and bacteria.
In most cases, however, the syndrome is easily treatable.
We have seen it triggered by the coronavirus more frequently in the past few months; according to the German Society for Pediatric Infectious Diseases, there have been 416 cases so far.
None of these children in Germany has died of PIMS so far, some had consequential damage, but these usually heal over time.
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Johannes Hübner, Head of Pediatric Infectious Diseases at Hauner's Children's Hospital.
© LMU Munich
And what about long covid in children? A controversial topic, right?
Hübner:
Yes, that is a difficult discussion.
The symptoms are often very vaguely defined.
There is talk of concentration disorders, sleep disorders, and reduced exercise capacity.
But better-defined symptoms that can be traced back to the virus, such as persistent cough or loss of taste, also occur.
The former are all things that can be attributed to the general stress situation in the context of the pandemic.
The fact is, we see children who have long-lasting symptoms that affect them badly.
But so far there are very, very few.
In any case not ten percent of the sick children, as you sometimes read.
Infectiologist on Corona autumn 2021: Cases in schools are likely to remain the exception
In Munich there has been a Long Covid outpatient clinic for children * since June (a project of the children's clinics of the Technical University and the LMU). Have patients already been there?
Hübner:
Yes, we already looked after children, although the outpatient department officially only starts work after the holidays.
Fortunately, there haven't been many so far.
You say "still" ... Many fear that the coronavirus will rush through schools and daycare centers in autumn and winter.
Hübner:
I'm not at all convinced of that.
We had very high incidences in November and December last year, none were vaccinated and fewer tests were carried out.
During this time we did our school studies, which showed that cases in schools are the exception, and within schools there was not a single transmission from child to child.
That can certainly be the case, but it is the exception and with the vast majority of teachers and hopefully also the parents who are vaccinated, the problem will hopefully be limited.
Corona and children: "Schools do not play an essential role as sources of infection"
So can schools and daycare centers definitely remain open even if the fourth wave is picking up speed?
Hübner:
WHO and the Robert Koch Institute agree: School can and must also take place in times of pandemics. Of course, with precautionary measures, which are more restrictive in Bavaria. But it's possible. Switzerland, Spain and France have always left schools open. You see, it was always about worrying about the elderly, who are seriously ill and have died. This concern has now been taken away from us, everyone has the chance to get vaccinated. Schools do not play an essential role as sources of infection *, and if they do, it is mainly teachers who carry the virus. This is why it is so important that all adults get vaccinated. Also to protect the children.
Some experts worry that the children's clinics will be overloaded in the coming autumn and winter because so-called respiratory diseases such as influenza failed last winter and could now explode.
Hübner:
I have that concern too.
If a child has had influenza or RSV (respiratory syncytial virus), they are usually reasonably protected.
That is missing now.
In some countries such as England and the USA you can already see that these diseases are increasing sharply in children, even outside the normal winter season.
A hot autumn and winter is ahead of us.
Children's clinics could reach the limit of their capacity, whereby the problem will probably be less SARS-CoV-2 than the many other viral respiratory diseases - or the combination of different pathogens, which is currently causing major problems in the USA.
Influenza season: the number of children in clinics with other respiratory diseases is likely to increase
So do we need a pediatric clinic traffic light?
Hübner:
Well, that's something we always have to do with.
The problem is that it is difficult to create capacities in children's clinics * which are then empty in the summer.
My advice is as a precaution: children should be vaccinated against influenza this fall.
Then this one problem disappears.
Because of influenza alone, we see around 200 children every year, because of Covid-19 there were 50.
When do you estimate it will be time for a corona vaccination for under-12-year-olds?
Hübner:
The first study results are expected for the end of September.
I think that the EMA will have decided on approval and the STIKO on the vaccination recommendation by the end of the year.
They are likely to be similar to those for 12 to 15 year olds: Here it is very effective and well tolerated.
Protecting children from Corona: the usual measures - but also a lot of games and contacts
And until then? What do you recommend parents to do?
Hübner:
I would certainly not aim to get my child infected, but consistently adhere to the normal and specified protective measures.
But: For children, contacts, games and normal life are just as important, you always have to take that to heart.
Do not keep children away from children.
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