Italian hospital sees 30-fold increase in children admitted with inflammatory condition
ITALY, (DAILY MAIL), 14 MAY 2020 - A new analysis suggests the rare inflammatory condition increasingly being seen in young children is in fact linked to the novel coronavirus.
Researchers in Lombardy, Italy - the epicentre of the country’s outbreak - looked at 10 pediatric cases with symptoms such as a full body rash and swollen hands and feet.
By comparison, over the last five years, just 19 children were admitted to the ER with the symptoms which resembled Kawasaki Disease.
The team says the admissions for these symptoms over the last two months is a 30-fold increase from what it normally sees.
What’s more, 80 percent of the children admitted to the hospital this year tested positive for coronavirus antibodies and 60 percent had more severe complications such as heart issues.
Cases of these rare inflammatory illnesses in children were first reported in Britain, Italy and Spain.
The syndrome resembles Kawasaki Disease, a condition that causes inflammation in the walls of the blood vessels and affects mostly children under five years old.
It’s not known what triggers the condition, but it is believed to be an immune system overreaction to an infection.
The new disorder, dubbed ‘Pediatric Multi-system Inflammatory Syndrome Potentially Associated with COVID-19,’ can attack multiple organs, impair heart function and weaken heart arteries.
In the Bergamo province, where Lombardy is located, only 19 children were diagnosed with Kawasaki Disease over the last five years.