Odisha: ‘Kids can be asymptomatic & potential super spreaders’
BHUBANESWAR: By now it has been proven that a large number of children are being infected with Covid-19, unlike last year. Doctors have blamed it on increased exposure to the virus owing to outdoor activities, travelling and general complacency in wearing masks, washing hands frequently and maintaining social distance.
In such a situation, they have advised parents to not hesitate or delay in getting their wards tested as soon as they show any symptom. Home quarantine for 14 days helps in case of suspected contact with a Covid-affected person. Besides, children can be super spreaders. So all outdoor activities for them should be stopped immediately, the city doctors have warned.
“Children may be asymptomatic and can be potential super spreaders. They should be made to undergo the Covid test or kept in home isolation if they come in contact with any suspected patient or if they develop symptoms like a running nose, cough and cold and viral fever. Children may also be asymptomatic with a heavy viral load, so they should maintain distance from elders or people with co-morbidities in the family,” cautioned Dr Chittaranjan Rath, paediatrician at AMRI Hospitals, Bubaneswar.
Many doctors said children, who contract Covid-19, may complain of headache, fatigue, loss of appetite, abdominal pain and diarrhoea.
“The situation is very scary. My son was going to school till Saturday. Though he used to wear a mask diligently, but while in school he must have talked and mingled with his friends and got exposed to the virus,” Diptirekha Dash, an anxious parent, said.
So far as many as 18, 865 children between 0-14 years of age have caught the coronavirus, a large number which was detected in the last one month.
With schools in the state remaining open for students of Classes IX to XII till Saturday, many youngsters must have been exposed to the virus. Besides, coaching centres and tuition classes were also open till Monday. “While the results of RT-PCR and antigen tests returned negative in many cases, the Covid antibody test in the same cases returned positive. This can also lead to multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C). Since they are potential spreaders, we must take enough care of our children. With limited medicines available for the treatment of Covid-19 in children, parents must ensure that preventive measures are not compromised,” Dr Subrat Kumar Majhi, paediatrician at Apollo Hospital here, said.