Half of children in hospital with Covid hospitalised because of the virus
Just over half of all children who were admitted to hospital with Covid-19 during the second wave of the virus in Scotland were hospitalised because of the disease, new data has shown.
The figures, disclosed to The Scotsman via Freedom of Information legislation, stem from Public Health Scotland’s own analysis of patients in hospital who were considered Covid-19 patients.
Over ten months between September 2020 and June this year, the average percentage of under-18s in hospital because of Covid-19 rather than simply with the disease sat at 52 per cent.
This is defined as being an admission to hospital with Covid-19 being the “primary diagnostic position within the first episode of the stay”, with the figure rising to as high as 64 per cent in September and October, and as low as 33 per cent in February.
In June, health secretary Humza Yousaf was criticised for allegedly “scaremongering” parents around the risk posed by Covid-19 to children after he claimed ten children had been hospitalised “because of Covid” during a row about the reopening of soft-play areas in Scotland.
He later said he regretted if the statement had caused undue alarm among parents, and was slapped on the wrist by the statistics regulator for the use of “inaccurate” figures which were not available to the public.
Jackie Baillie, Labour’s health spokesperson, also called rising levels of Covid-19 hospitalisations among children as “incredibly worrying” in July.
The distinction between hospitalised ‘with’ and ‘because of ’ Covid-19 is key to understanding the impact of the disease as vaccines continue to improve immunity among the general population.
Many hospitalisations ‘with’ Covid will be cases where individuals are admitted for other reasons, such as broken bones, but test positive for the virus on arrival or during their hospital stay.
The Public Health Scotland data confirms studies that show children are less likely than the rest of the population to be hospitalised ‘because of ’ Covid-19, with Public Health Scotland stating between 66 and 78 per cent of overall Covid-19 hospitalisations between January and June this year were ‘because of ’ Covid-19.
It is not known how many of the children hospitalised because of the virus had underlying conditions.
Scottish Government figures state that 559 patients under 20 were considered Covid-19 admissions between March 2020 and June this year, with at least 415 of those admissions occurring between September 2020 and mid-june 2021.
However, these figures include 18 and 19-year-olds, while the hospitalisations data does not.
In total, more than 100,000 tests taken by those aged 14 and under and a further 50,000 among 15 to 19-year-olds have returned positive results since the beginning of the pandemic, data shows.
After those aged under 18, the next group with the lowest proportion of Covid-19 admissions with a primary diagnosis of Covid-19 is, on average, those aged 80 and over with an average of 61 per cent of Covid-19 admissions ‘because of’ the virus.
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The total number of children and young people hospitalised in Scotland because of Covid-19 is small compared to other age groups and our NHS is continuing to deliver tailored care based on individual needs.
"We continue to monitor the numbers of patients hospitalised, including under-18s, who have tested positive.
“The three key actions we can all take are get vaccinated, lateral flow test twice a week, and follow all hygiene guidance. These are the ways to reduce cases further and protect ourselves and our loved ones.”
Appointments for coronavirus vaccine booster jabs are now being offered to the over60s in Scotland and adults with health conditions.
Invitation letters are being sent to the 60-69 age group for a third dose of vaccine.
Vaccination boosters are already being administered to Scots aged 70 and over, those at the highest risk from infection, care home residents and frontline health and social care workers.
Scotland's Health Secretary Humza Yousaf insisted the booster programme is "on track" despite calls from opposition parties to speed up.
Mr Yousaf said: "For those eligible for the Covid-19 boosters, appointments can only take place six months (24 weeks) after your second dose.
"As such, it may take several weeks before you receive your invitation letter.
"We remain on track with Scotland's booster programme, prioritising those at the highest risk for both Covid-19 and flu.
"We started this as soon as possible following the JCVI (Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation) advice that the booster should be offered no earlier than six months after completion of the primary vaccine course."
The Scottish Government has said it intends to allow over-50s, unpaid carers and household contacts of immunosuppressed individuals to book booster appointments online from mid-november.
Many Scots, including those with underlying health conditions, will be offered a flu vaccination at the same time.
Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-hamilton said: "I can only imagine Humza Yousaf's persistent lateness must be a consistent pain to others if his idea of 'on track' is six weeks late.
"I am getting a barrage of complaints from older constituents that they are either unable to receive the flu vaccine at the same time as their booster jab or are being sent hours away by public transport.”