Wednesday September 16, 2020 | VICTORIA, BC
by Mary P Brooke, B.Sc., editor | Island Social Trends
The BC Centre for Disease Controls heads up their online section about COVID-19 and Children with this bold statement: “Children (ages 0-12) are at low risk of catching and spreading COVID-19”.
The catch-and-spread aspect being low-risk among children is perhaps based on only presently about 7.9 percent* of test-positive COVID-19 cases in BC being among children (* BC Centre for Disease Control, September 15, 2020).
As of September 15, a total of 582 children have tested positive for COVID-19 in BC (197 under the age of 10,and 385 in ages 10 to 19 years). In total, 11 children and teens have contracted COVID-19 on Vancouver Island during the pandemic.
And during the summer, Provincial Health Officer Dr Bonnie Henry said the number of children getting COVID is a small portion of the under-19 population in BC.
But other reports have shown that children have a high level of viral load in their nasal passages, and it seems unreasonable to think that just because of age that spread would be less from children.
Perhaps that seems the case because perhaps the force of air from the mouth and nose would not be as powerful from a child as from an adult, just based on body size and respiratory force thereby.
Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children:
But as Dr Henry has now pointed out, the experience of COVID-19 for a child might seem mild, but that subsequent inflammation throughout the body — called Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MISC).
The BC CDC website goes light on the connection between COVID-19 and MISC: “There have been no confirmed cases of this syndrome in BC, however, the first cases of suspect MISC were reported in August 2020.
The cases are considered suspect because they did not test positive for COVID-19 virus, they did not test positive for COVID-19 antibodies, and they had no known exposure to a reported COVID-19 case. Since none of the cases were linked to a COVID-19 infection, it is expected that they are likely due to another cause. All cases have recovered.”
But Dr Henry said she wanted to participate in a continued study by the World Health Organization on MISC possibly being related to COVID-19, and so BC CDC is now contributing their data.
Dr Henry has told media in recent weeks that people of any age can contract COVID-19, and it can be a serious illness at any age.
COVID-19 testing for children:
The BC CDC recommends using the self-assessment tool to see if your child needs testing for COVID-19.
Testing is recommended for anyone with cold, influenza or COVID-19-like symptoms, even mild ones. See the BCCDC testing page for more information on testing, including a list of testing centres and information on what to do after a test.
There is a “COVID-19 Test for Children” video online as provided by BC Children’s Hospital. The 2-minute upbeat video. “There is a virus going around called COVID-19 that is making some people sick.”
People who get COVID-19 “can feel achy and tired”, it says in the video. “We need to do a test to see if it’s COVID-19 that is making you feel sick.”
Other care during COVID:
“Getting medical care for your child is safe. Offices, clinics and hospitals have the supplies and procedures in place to keep everyone safe during your visit. Very few children have become seriously ill from COVID-19. It is safe for your child to get the medical care they need, like routine immunizations or going to the hospital for broken bones or wounds that may need stitches.” ~ BC Centre for Disease Control