While most children infected with COVID-19 have mild or no symptoms at all, some can get severely ill, according to Health Minister Dr. Frank Anthony, who on Friday disclosed that four children with the virus are in the Infectious Disease Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU) as he pleaded for citizens to take the necessary precautions.
Speaking during yesterday’s COVID-19, Anthony said that some 1,567 children between one-month and fourteen-years-old have been infected with COVID-19 in Guyana since the start of the pandemic. Of that number 287 were children between one-month and four-years-old, 524 between five and nine years old and 756 between ten to fourteen-years-old.
According to him, on most occasions it is by accident that children are diagnosed with the virus as they have no symptoms and would only be tested if someone in their family tests positive.
However, he disclosed, over the last two weeks there seems to be a recurring pattern of children suffering from the more severe form of the virus, while noting that there are currently four children in the COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit at Liliendaal.
“We are monitoring them and hopefully the prognosis would be good because the medical team is really working to ensure that they provide the best care,” he stated.
Now that children are becoming more symptomatic, Anthony said, it is more important for persons to take the necessary precautions. He went on to state that when it comes to COVID-19, not much attention was paid to children because of their strong resistance to the virus but now it is time to do so.
“We are not only seeing mild cases with children but we are seeing more severe forms of COVID among the children population. If children are home most of the time, we have to consider the interaction of adults who leave for work and then go back home. If those adults are irresponsible, they can [carry] that infection home,” he said.
Anthony said while not yet seen in Guyana, Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) has been found to be associated with COVID-19. According to the United States’ Centers for Disease Control, MIS-C is a condition where different body parts can become inflamed, including the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, skin, eyes, or gastrointestinal organs. While it is not yet know what causes MIS-C, it was found that many children with MIS-C had the virus that causes COVID-19, or had been around someone with COVID-19. The disease can be deadly.
Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) is yet to approve COVID-19 vaccination for children saying that evidence is needed on the use of the different COVID-19 vaccines to be able to make general recommendations on vaccinating children against COVID-19. WHO’s Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) has concluded that the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine is suitable for use by people aged 12 years and above but that particular vaccine is not available in Guyana.
In this regard, President Irfaan Ali yesterday said that the government has approached the United States government and manufacturers to procure the Pifzer vaccine. He also expressed concern over children being hospitalised.
Currently only the AstraZeneca, Sinopharm and Sputnik V vaccines are available in Guyana. Anthony said that 22,000 doses of the Sinopharm are expected to arrive in Guyana today and this will be distributed across the regions. Regarding the Sputnik V second doses, which are needed to complete the full vaccination of many people, Anthony said that the government is still working with suppliers to confirm a date of arrival. He said they are trying to ensure that the vaccines arrive before the 12-week period within which the doses are to be administered are up.
Anthony also disclosed that as of Thursday, 234,255 persons have received the first dose of a vaccine and this represents 48.1% of adult population, while 112,371 persons have received both doses, which represents 23.1% of the adult population in Guyana. He subsequently reiterated call for persons to get vaccinated against the virus, while noting that it will prevent severe form of COVID-19 infection.
