UC Davis Health warns of increase in MIS-C cases among unvaccinated children

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Medical experts at UC Davis are escalating concerns over the dangerous long-term impacts of COVID-19 in unvaccinated children.

"They can be really scary sick," said Dr. Dean Blumberg, UC Davis' chief of pediatric infectious diseases. "Some of these children are in the ICUs, are on ventilators, sometimes need support of medications to help with heart function or blood pressure."

COVID-19 cases among children rose in January after the holidays. Pediatric infections now make up the majority of cases at UC Davis Medical Center.

"We certainly have been seeing kids with MIS-C," Blumberg said. "They can have involvement of the brain, heart, kidneys ... any of those can be damaged and result in long-term damage."

MIS-C, or multisystem inflammatory syndrome, is rare, impacting one out of every 3,000 children who get COVID-19. But it can be deadly. More than 50 children in the U.S have died from MIS-C. Now, more children are getting it, sometimes when it's least expected.

MIS-C symptoms can show two to four weeks after a child has recovered from COVID-19. The condition can also affect asymptomatic children. There have been 803 total cases of MIS-C in California, according to the state health department.

New data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found 59 % of MIS-C cases nationally were among Hispanic/Latino or Black children.

"We think it's likely related to exposure because parents are more frontline workers and have more risk of infection," Blumberg said.

Symptoms of MIS-C include high fever, rash, vomiting and diarrhea. Long COVID-19 is also a problem affecting child patients that could last for years.

"They might have lingering cough, fatigue, sometimes fever, headache," Blumberg said.

A new CDC study found that two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine had a 91% effectiveness rate against MIS-C.

"There is more data and safety info on the COVID-19 vaccine than any other vaccine in the world," Blumberg said. "They’ve been so intensely studied. More than 10 billion doses administered worldwide, and 5 million in the U.S. So there’s no question in my mind that vaccines are safe and effective."

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Source: KCRA News

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