New York, March 23 Despite tall claims by researchers, including comments from Tesla CEO Elon Musk that children are safe from new coronavirus, a 12-year-old girl is fighting for her life at an Atlanta hospital after being tested COVID-19 positive. Emma has not travelled recently and had no pre-existing conditions, reports CNN.
Children's Healthcare of Atlanta-Scottish Rite Hospital confirmed that a current patient tested positive for Covid-19. "The patient remains in isolation, and we have consistently used appropriate precautions. Additional details will not be released due to patient privacy laws," a hospital spokesperson was quoted as saying. In China, one child, a 14-year-old boy, died of COVID-19, according to an upcoming study in the journal Pediatrics. Nearly 6 per cent of children's cases were severe, compared with 18.5 per cent of adults experiencing severe symptoms.
Several researchers have claimed that children are at low or no risk of contracting new coronavirus. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned some children develop 'severe' or 'critical' disease from coronavirus and parents need to prepare their kids to guard against COVID-19. Musk had tweeted: "Kids are essentially immune, but elderly with existing conditions are vulnerable. Family gatherings with close contact between kids & grandparents probably most risky."
Musk's assertion was contradicted at a White House podium by global health expert Dr Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus task force response coordinator. "To the moms and dads out there that have children with immune-deficiencies or other medical conditions, we don't know the level of risk," Birx said. "There is just not enough numbers at this time to tell them if they are at additional risk or not in the same way that adults are. No one is immune. We know it is highly contagious for everyone". Data analyzed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that younger Americans are at substantial risk of experiencing serious medical problems from the new coronavirus sweeping the globe. A latest CDC analysis of US cases shows 38 per cent of those sick enough to be hospitalized were younger than 55.
( With inputs from IANS )