Since mid-May 2020, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been tracking reports of Multi-Symptom Inflammatory Syndrome (MIS-C), a rare but serious condition associated with coronavirus (COVID-19).
“MIS-C is a new syndrome, and many questions remain about why some children develop it after a COVID-19 illness or contact with someone with COVID-19, while others do not,” the CDC said. “As of September 3, the CDC has received reports of 792 confirmed cases of MIS-C and 16 deaths in 42 states and Washington, DC.”
Kentucky, according to the CDC, has had between one and ten MIS-C cases. In late May, K105 reported that Kentucky had five cases of MIS-C, with one child placed on a ventilator.
Additional cases are under investigation nationwide.
According to Boston Children’s Hospital, “MIS-C has varied symptoms that affect several organs and systems in the body. Many children have symptoms resembling toxic shock syndrome or Kawasaki disease, in which blood vessels, including the coronary arteries, enlarge or form aneurysms. Some children have signs of excessive blood clotting, gastrointestinal symptoms, kidney injury, neurologic symptoms, or heart inflammation with impaired heart function. These symptoms can occur in different combinations.”
The CDC said:
- Most cases are in children between the ages of one and 14, with an average age of eight-years-old.
- Cases have occurred in children from less than one-years-old to 20-years-old.
- More than 70 percent of reported cases have occurred in children who are Hispanic/Latino (276 cases) or Non-Hispanic Black (230 cases).
- 99 percent of cases (783) tested positive for SARS CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. The remaining one percent were around someone with COVID-19.
- Most children developed MIS-C two to four weeks after infection with SARS-CoV-2.
- Slightly more than half (54 percent) of reported cases were male.
The CDC says, “Children appeared to be less likely than adults to be infected or to have severe illness early in the COVID-19 pandemic; however, as the outbreak has progressed, larger numbers of children are getting infected. It’s unknown whether this increase in COVID-19 cases among children will also increase cases of MIS-C. CDC and state partners will be monitoring for additional cases and will adapt MIS-C recommendations as needed.”
CDC officials are investigating and assessing reported MIS-C cases and the health outcomes to determine more about specific risk factors for MIS-C, how the illness progresses in children and how to best identify MIS-C and distinguish it from similar illnesses.
By Ken Howlett, News Director
Contact Ken at ken@k105.com
