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The general message earlier in the pandemic was that kids are not at high risk for COVID-19 and do not easily spread it to one another. With the rise of the , that message is changing.
is pathologist-in-chief and interim pediatrician-in-chief at Texas Children's Hospital in Houston.
鈥淐hildren definitely are susceptible. Children and adolescents and young adults for that matter. And so, in 2020, I think that message was drowned out by the obvious concern for鈥� older adults and for the elderly,鈥� Versalovic said.
He says Texas Children鈥檚 has seen over 15,000 COVID-19 cases in children this year.
鈥淎bout 10% of those children do end up hospitalized and roughly a third of those hospitalized do end up in critical care. It鈥檚 very important that we take this seriously,鈥� Versalovic said.
Children under the age of 12 are not yet eligible for vaccination. Versalovic is involved in a clinical trial at Texas Children鈥檚 and says data from that trial won鈥檛 even be submitted to the FDA until 鈥渟ometime in September at the earliest.鈥� That means many kids will start the school year unvaccinated 鈥� which Versalovic says is a concern.
鈥淚 am hopeful that we're going to be back in the classroom of in-person learning,鈥� Versalovic said. 鈥淏ut I do think that schools need to be mindful about masking, distancing, sanitizing, having sanitizers readily available to children in schools.鈥�
Versalovic says should get them vaccinated as soon as possible and those with younger children should continue to take the .
鈥淲hen we're in public, crowded spaces, especially indoors, but even outdoors, be mindful when in a crowded environment, particularly among strangers, that where you don't know the vaccination status of the group, children should try to mask as much as possible. And parents should be good role models. Even if they are vaccinated,鈥� Versalovic said.
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