The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) has said that children do not contribute significantly to the spread of Covid-19. Eilish O’Regan explains what that means for Ireland.
Hiqa conducted a review of the evidence from a limited number of existing studies and came to that conclusion.
There were only seven studies. He concluded that children play a role in transmission of the infection, but do not transmit the coronavirus at a higher rate than others in the population. There was an opinion that they were vectors and that they were an important part of the infection chain.
What did Hiqa find?
He found that children are not contributing substantially to the spread of Covid-19 at home or in schools. One study suggests that while there is high Covid-19 transmission among adults 25 years of age and older, transmission is lower in younger people, particularly those younger than 14.
What was the evidence from the studies?
An Australian study examined the potential spread of 18 confirmed cases of nine students and nine staff members at 15 different schools.
The investigation examined more than 800 close contacts at the 15 different schools and found that no teacher or staff member recruited Covid-19 from any of the initial school cases. An elementary school child and a secondary school child may have contracted Covid-19 from the initial cases in their schools.
How about transmitting the virus to other people in your home?
He said that from the small number of studies identified, it appears that children are not, to date, contributing substantially to transmission of the virus at home. Pediatric cases represent a small percentage of patients.
In a large national epidemiological study in Iceland, where 6% of the population was tested, children under the age of 10 had a lower incidence of the virus than adolescents or adults.
They are likely to be asymptomatic. Emerging evidence in the included studies has highlighted that transmission from child to adult or family member has the potential to occur, albeit at extremely low rates.
Have there been many confirmed cases of the virus among children in Ireland?
381 cases have been registered in children under the age of 15, 121 of whom are under the age of five.
What conclusions can be drawn from this when deciding whether to reopen schools?
It will fuel decision-making, but because the evidence is limited to a few studies, the information is limited. People are still finding out more about this new virus.
It would not change the need for physical distance in schools to protect children and teachers. Also, schools create a lot of human trafficking and that’s not good for controlling the spread.
However, if a child is with their mother or father in a store, they may not be viewed with the same level of concern.
How about visiting your grandparents?
Caution is needed and there should be no meetings until there is an official green light and guidance on when it is safe to do so.
Older people and those with weakened immune systems are very susceptible to the virus and not worth the risk. They must continue to contact their grandparents in other ways.
