Children who contract Covid are more likely to suffer persistent debilitating symptoms than adults, landmark new research suggests.
American scientists found that children were left with lingering symptoms “in almost every organ system” after being struck by the virus, a phenomenon now better known as long Covid.
The researchers, who followed nearly 4,000 children who had been infected, also found that younger children were more likely to suffer from memory or concentration problems, and teenagers were more likely to suffer from loss of taste or smell.
Experts today called the findings “compelling evidence” that children are not “faking it” and warned that “we will have to be prepared to deal with this for a generation.”
This comes after Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner’s daughter Violet revealed last month that she contracted a post-viral illness in 2019 and urged medical facilities to impose “mask mandates” in an impassioned speech to the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.
Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner’s daughter Violet revealed last month that she contracted a post-viral illness in 2019 and urged medical facilities to impose “mask mandates” in an impassioned speech to the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.
The 18-year-old called on the board to “address the long COVID crisis” by strengthening pandemic-era protections in hospitals and government buildings. Pictured: Jennifer Garner with Violet Affleck
The 18-year-old called on the junta to “confront the long Covid crisis” by strengthening pandemic-era protections in hospitals and government buildings.
US officials suggest that one in ten people who contract the virus will develop long Covid, while one in ten will developIt is reported that around two million people in the UK are living with the condition, including 60,000 children.
Professor Lawrence Kleinman, a pediatrics and population health expert at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and co-author of the study, said: “We have compelling evidence that Covid is not just a mild, benign disease for children.
‘Some children are severely affected, they are not faking it or making it up.
“This is a new chronic childhood disease that brings with it all the unknowns that this entails. We will have to be prepared to deal with it for a generation.”
The symptoms of long Covid have long been considered to be highly varied, from fatigue and shortness of breath to muscle and joint pain.
In the new study, researchers analyzed survey results submitted by parents or guardians of nearly 900 school-aged children, ages 6 to 11, and more than 4,000 adolescents, ages 12 to 17.
Among school-age children, 751 had suffered a Covid-19 infection, while among adolescents the figure rose to 3,109.
The survey assessed 74 known and potential symptoms of long Covid across nine areas of the body, including the heart and lungs, neurological system, menstrual system and gastrointestinal system.
American scientists found that children were left with lingering symptoms “in almost every organ system” after being struck by the virus, a phenomenon now better known as long Covid.
Researchers found Forty-five percent of school-aged children with Covid reported at least one long-term symptom after initial recovery, compared with 33 percent of uninfected children.
Meanwhile, more than a third (39 percent) of teens infected with Covid reported a prolonged symptom, compared with 27 percent of uninfected teens.
But the most common symptoms among teenagers were loss of smell and taste, Followed by low energy, muscle aches and fatigue.
Among school-aged children, memory and concentration problems topped the list, followed by stomachache, headaches and back or neck pain.
In comparison, adults who had been affected by the virus reported 37 symptoms more frequently than those who did not have Covid, including mental confusion and gastrointestinal and cardiac symptoms.
Writing in the Journal of the American Medical AssociationThe scientists said the children experienced prolonged symptoms after Covid infection “in nearly all organ systems, and the vast majority had multisystem involvement.”
Dr Tanayott Thaweethai, co-author of the study and a biostatistician at Harvard University, also said: ‘This work describes the first data-driven approach to reveal patterns of symptoms among school-aged children and adolescents that are distinct from those seen in adults.
“We hope this will lead to a better understanding of long Covid in pediatric populations.”
Ministers have repeatedly said they will not resort to imposing lockdowns unless an apocalyptic variant of Covid emerges.
A wall of immunity among the population, built by repeated waves of infection and vaccination campaigns, has given officials the confidence to relegate pandemic-era measures to the past.
Spikes in Covid cases could still cause mass illness across the country, causing chaos in schools, the health service and public transport.
But officials are no longer tracking the prevalence of the virus in the same way they used to, as part of the government’s return to pre-Covid normality.
