[UPDATED] Ministry warns of increased covid19-related issues in children

ACTING medical chief of staff at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex Dr Joanne Paul warned there may be an increase in cases of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) in late June, early July.

Paul was speaking at the Ministry of Health press conference on Monday. She said MIS-C usually presents four to six weeks after an adult surge.

Trinidad and Tobago experienced its second surge of the covid19 virus in May after relatively low numbers since August of last year.

Paul said, to date, there are 40 confirmed MIS-C cases in TT, 25 of which tested PCR positive for covid19 and 15 who tested negative.

She said, because the condition comes after covid19 it is possible for children to test negative and still exhibit symptoms.

“We are appealing to guardians to have high awareness because we are expecting increased cases.” She said protocols would be resent to healthcare professionals as a reminder to ensure they are also aware of the signs and symptoms of MIS-C.

The symptoms, she said, are very similar to severe covid19 including diarrhoea and abdominal pain, high pulse, pale or dusky completion – signs the heart is not functioning – and   bluish/black fingers and toes.

She also warned of other issues arising from covid19 diagnoses in children.
“Although we know about the physical aspects of covid19, we have to remember collateral aspects, (including) mental health.”

Those include increased anxiety and depression because of having balance online learning with increased screen time.
She said there have also been reports of more children having accidents at home.

“We have to take care of our mental health (as adults) and take care of them.”
Paul also addressed other differences between instances of covid19 in children and adults. She said most cases in children are mild and asymptomatic as children have fewer receptors which results in fewer particles entering the system and fewer particles to transmit.

She said the majority of children did not have severe covid19 but there were isolated cases. The key things to look out for are abdominal pain and diarrhoea.

Other symptoms include a high drowsiness and feeling confused. She said in children, pay attention to the brain, the heart, and the bowel for symptoms of severe covid19.

This story has been updated to include additional details. See original post below.

ACTING Medical Chief of Staff at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex Dr Joanne Paul is warning that there may be an increase in cases of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) later this month and going into early July.

Speaking at the Ministry of Health press conference on Monday, she said MIS-C usually presents four to six weeks after a surge in transmission in the adult population.

TT experienced its second surge of the covid19 virus in May, after relatively low numbers since last August.

Paul said that to date, there are 40 confirmed MIS-C cases locally, 25 of which tested PCR positive for covid19 and 15 testing negative.

She said because the condition comes after covid19, it is possible for children to test negative yet still exhibit symptoms.

“We are appealing to guardians to have high awareness because we are expecting increased cases.” She said protocols will be re-sent to healthcare professionals as a reminder to ensure they are also aware of the signs and symptoms.

Symptoms of MIS-C, she said, are very similar to severe covid including diarrhoea and abdominal pain, a high pulse, pale or dusky complexion – signs the heart is not functioning properly – and bluish/black fingers and toes.