Covid-19 and children

Worried about the impact of Covid 19 on your children? Here are the key things you should know.

Whilst the global Covid-19 pandemic has had a huge impact on all of us and on many aspects of our lives, children have fortunately been little affected by direct infection of the SARS-Cov-2 virus.

The vast majority of children who catch the virus have mild or no symptoms. However, there have been rare exceptions and a very small number of children have developed serious consequences of Covid-19.

As we learn and understand more about SARS-Cov-2, Paediatricians in various parts of the world have come to recognise a new multisystem inflammatory disorder, now referred to as PIMS (Paediatric Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome) which appears to happen a few weeks following Covid-19 infection.

The features of this condition are variable as guided by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health:

• • • Persistent fever of more than 38°C
    • Abdominal pain
    • Conjunctivitis
    • Cough
    • Diarrhoea
    • Vomiting
    • Headache
    • Rash
    • Swollen hands and feet
    • Respiratory symptoms
    • Confusion
    • Neck swelling
    • Enlarged lymph nodes

Should your child develop a fever and become unwell with the above symptoms, you should seek urgent medical advice.