Some 15 children have been hospitalized in recent days in New York because they suffered from an inflammatory disease that could be linked to the coronavirus and of which dozens of cases have already been reported elsewhere.
The patients, who were hospitalized between April 17 and May 1, aged 2 to 15, all had fever, and some had rashes, abdominal pain, vomiting or diarrhea, authorities said. city health.
No formal link to the coronavirus
Their symptoms resembled those of Kawasaki disease, an inflammatory disease that most commonly affects children under the age of 5, or toxic shock syndrome, linked to the production of toxins in response to a bacterial infection.
All of these children required respiratory or cardiac assistance, and sometimes both. The patients received treatment, which included aspirin, and none died from the disease.
The head of the New York City health department, Oxiris Barbot, said that no formal link had been established between this disease and the coronavirus. Among the sick children, 4 tested positive for coronavirus and 6 others presented antibodies. “We are not sure what it is,” she said during the mayor’s daily press briefing. “We are still learning about how the Covid-19 works every day.”
Cases in Philadelphia and Boston
Even if the number of cases remains modest by comparison with the figures of contamination of the coronavirus in New York, the mayor of New York Bill de Blasio considered that it was “enough (…) to concern us”. Health officials have suggested that there may be many more cases, with only the most serious having been reported.
The mayor called on all New York parents to be vigilant and to report to health professionals any child who has similar symptoms. Pediatricians have also been alerted, so as to better identify possible new cases. Several similar cases have been reported recently in Europe, mainly in the countries most affected by the coronavirus. Dr Barbot spoke on Tuesday of cases in Philadelphia and Boston.
Untreated, Kawasaki disease or toxic shock syndrome can lead to death in some cases.
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