US CDC report claims children with no symptoms can spread coronavirus

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report revealed that children with mild or no symptoms of COVID-19 can spread the virus to the next person. According to the report, twelve children, including one eight-month-old who were infected in a child care facility transmitted the virus to at least 12 people outside the facilities. The data revealed that children can carry the virus from child care settings to their homes. 

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16% increase in cases

According to the report, almost half a million children in the US got infected with coronavirus and there was a 16% increase between August 20 and September 3. The report claimed that fewer children experienced severe illness from the virus than adults. The researchers found that the contact tracing data from 184 people having links to three child care facilities in Salt Lake County from this April to July and concluded that the children can spread the virus raising a matter of concern. 

They also found two children who were asymptomatic passed the virus to others. The contact tracing data collected during April 1–July 10, 2020 through Utah’s National Electronic Disease Surveillance System (EpiTrax) were used to retrospectively construct transmission chains from reported COVID-19 child care facility outbreaks, defined as two or more laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 cases within 14 days among staff members or attendees at the same facility.

EpiTrax maintains records of epidemiologic linkage between index patients and contacts. It also captures data on demographic characteristics, symptoms, exposures, testing, and the monitoring/isolation period. 

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Analysis of contact tracing data in Salt Lake County, Utah, identified outbreaks of COVID-19 in three small to large child care facilities linked to index cases in adults and associated with transmission from children to household and nonhousehold contacts. In these three outbreaks, 54% of the cases linked to the facilities occurred in children. Transmission likely occurred from children with confirmed COVID-19 in a child care facility to 25% of their nonfacility contacts.

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Image: Representational