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COVID-Kawasaki disease link?
Physicians in the U.S. have reported a spike in children with Kawasaki disease or similar symptoms. The question is if this is a new disease or somehow linked or caused by COVID-19.
NEW YORK - Northwell Health Cohen Children's Medical Center in New Hyde Park, New York, is seeing an alarming spike in symptoms that resemble Kawasaki syndrome, according to Dr. James Schneider. Kawasaki is a vascular illness that can wreak havoc on a child's body if it is not treated properly.
Schneider, who is director of pediatric critical care there, said these kids are or were sick with COVID-19. On Monday alone, six kids were admitted to the pediatric ICU with these symptoms. The question is: Are these Kawasaki-like symptoms are linked to the coronavirus infection?
Some Kawasaki like-cases are being reported around New York City but with no clear department of health numbers. NYU Langone is investigating the link to see if it is definitive, according to Dr. Elizabeth Haines, NYU Langone assistant chief of pediatric emergency medicine.
The World Health Organization has told its global network "to be on alert for this." "There are some recent rare descriptions of children in some European countries that have had this inflammatory syndrome, which is similar to the Kawasaki syndrome, but it seems to be very rare," the WHO's Maria Van Kerkhove said at a press conference on April 29.