Group of young ‘Covid Warriors’ help tackle spread of coronavirus
CHILDREN from Northern Ireland are part of a group of “Covid Warriors” helping tackle the spread of coronavirus.
More than 1,000 children from across the UK have had their antibodies measured in the trial called ‘Seroprevalence of SARS-COV-2 infection in healthy children’.
The study is led by Queen’s University Belfast, in partnership with the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust Northern Ireland and Public Health England.
The aim of the study, which began in May and is ongoing, is to assess the number of children who have had Covid-19, the symptoms of the infection, and if those children have antibodies that may be able to fight off the infection.
Researchers are measuring children’s Covid-19 antibodies via blood tests with further tests planned at two months and six months.
The researchers have found that following the first wave of the pandemic, seven per cent of the children tested positive for antibodies, indicating previous infection with Covid-19.
Half of the children with Covid-19 reported no symptoms, and gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms (such as diarrhoea and vomiting) were also more common than cough or changes in the children’s sense of smell or taste, which may have implications for the testing criteria used for children.
The findings also showed that children under 10 were just as likely to have evidence of prior infection as older children, and that asymptomatic children were just as likely to develop antibodies as symptomatic children.
Dr Tom Waterfield, researcher from the Wellcome-wolfson Institute for Experimental Medicine at Queen’s and lead on the study, said: “Following the first wave of the pandemic in the UK, we have learnt that half of children participating in this study are asymptomatic with SARS-COV-2 infection, and those with symptoms do not typically have a cough or changes to their smell/taste, with GI upset a far more common symptom.
“This study has shown that we may want to consider refining the testing criteria for children to include GI symptoms.”