COVID-19: US records 25% increase in infections among children in last 2 weeks

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics the number of coronavirus cases in children has seen a surge by 25% between December 3 and 17. The latest report by AAP said that more than 1.8 million children across the US have tested positive for the novel coronavirus since the beginning of the pandemic. Out of this, 182,000 cases in children were diagnosed in just last week alone. This is being termed as the ‘highest weekly increase’ since the pandemic began.

Virus spreads among children 

AAP also emphasized on the need for standard childhood immunizations that keep the children safe, as people celebrate the rollout of COVID-19 vaccine. This is due to the falling rates of routine vaccinations as a lot of babies and young children are behind in the process. According to the latest report, as of December 17, children represented between 1.1 per cent and 2.8 per cent of total hospitalizations. Between 0.2 per cent and 4.0 per cent of all children infected with COVID-19 that resulted in hospitalizations, it was seen that less than 0.21 per cent of all children lost their lives. The report took data from states like New York City, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Guam. 

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Previously, a report showed that kids aged 10 end up in spreading the virus more easily to family members than younger kids, and might even spread it as easily as adults. This was when an outbreak was suspected at a Georgia summer camp. According to the reports by AP, Dr. Sean O’Leary of the American Academy of Pediatrics said that with other respiratory viruses, “young children are the germ factories. In this case, it’s different and we don’t really know why”. 

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The COVID-19 pandemic which saw its first outbreak in a wet market in Wuhan, China last year has now spread all across the world. The virus, named COVID-19 by the World Health Organisation, has infected 77,718,022 people worldwide with the global death toll reaching at 1,709,011. As per the John Hopkins coronavirus resource centre, the United States has reported a total of at least 18,473,716 positive virus cases and has a death toll of 326,772. The US currently has the highest number of reported cases in the world, making it the epicentre of the deadly virus.

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(Image Credits: Unsplash/RepresentativeImage)