Children are “silent spreaders” of COVID-19 and have higher levels of virus in their airways than critically ill adults, and worry about a third wave if schools do not reopen properly, according to a researcher from the most comprehensive study of pediatric coronavirus patients so far.
“If we do not do well in reopening schools, we will have a third wave performed by children,” said Dr. Alessio Fasano, director of the Mucosal Immunology and Biology Research Center at Massachusetts General Hospital and senior author of the study. published in the Journal of Pediatrics.
The risk of coronavirus infection is greater with a high viral load, and although children with the virus are less likely to become very ill, they can still spread infection and bring the virus home, according to Fasano.
“During this COVID-19 pandemic, we have been investigating mainly symptomatic subjects, so that we have reached the wrong conclusion that the vast majority of people are infected adults,” Fasano said.
“However, our results show that children are not protected against this virus. We should not cut children as potential spreaders of this virus, ”he said.
In the study of 192 children aged 0-22, 49 children tested positive for the virus that causes COVID-19, and an additional 18 children had late-onset coronavirus disease.
The infected children were shown to have a significantly higher level of virus in their airways than adults in hospital in intensive care units, especially in the first two days of infection – a finding that Fasano said came as a surprise.
Fasano said many participants lived in hot-spot areas, had contact with a known coronavirus case or had flu-like symptoms. Many were asymptomatic as did not have many symptoms.
More than half of the children in the study with acute coronavirus infection came from low-income communities compared to 2% from high-income communities.
Even when children have symptoms such as fever, runny nose and cough, they often overlap with the flu as a common cold, and confuse an accurate COVID-19 diagnosis, said the study conducted by MGH and MassGeneral Hospital for Children.
The investigation comes as districts in Massachusetts prepare for the start of the school year and 70% plan for some instruction in person, Gov. announced. Charlie Baker joined earlier this week.
Fasano said schools can reopen safely, but only with strict infection control measures to keep children and teachers safe, including social distance, mask-wearing, hand washing and routine screening of students for the virus.
“If we do not have that kind of approach, we will have another disaster here,” Fasano said. “Do nothing but apply, do not just relax. I know we have been sick and tired of being home for months.”
Researchers said that relying on control of body temperature and symptom to identify infection will not be enough.
Fasano said for families living in hot spot areas, “You have to be really, really conservative when you send your kids to school.”
