12:27 PM
Saturday 05 September 2020
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Agencies
As the school reopened, experts identified three new symptoms that often appear in children infected with the Coronavirus.
Scientists at the University of Belfast in Northern Ireland reported diarrhea, stomach pain and nausea as new symptoms among children infected with “Covid-19”, according to the “Russia Today” website.
These symptoms do not appear in the British National Health Service’s official list of the main signs of “Covid-19”, which include fever, cough, and loss of taste and smell, with officials reluctance to add them to avoid unnecessary anxiety, according to reports.
In contrast, the US Centers for Disease Control already lists nausea or vomiting and diarrhea as possible symptoms of the disease in children.
Scientists at the University of Belfast claim that these symptoms are major indicators of a fatal illness in children, but coughing is not a reliable indicator in children as it is in adults.
The Belfast trial included about 1,000 children, with an average age of 10 years, who took a blood test to determine if they had recently contracted the virus.
The results, published in the journal medRxiv, revealed that 68 of the 992 children had antibodies to the virus, indicating that they had been infected with Sars-Cov-2 at some point.
Half of those who tested positive for symptoms reported this, and fever was the most common, and it was reported in 21 of 68 children who tested positive for antibodies to the Coronavirus.
Coughing was also common but less specific, as it was most commonly reported by children who tested negative as well as those who tested positive.
Gastrointestinal symptoms, such as diarrhea, vomiting and abdominal cramps, were reported by 13 out of 68 children who were tested positive for antibodies, and they appear to be closely related to coronavirus infection.
Loss of smell or taste was also less common, as it was reported by six of the children with antibodies.
None of the children were seriously ill or required hospitalization.
Lead researcher Dr. Tom Waterfield said: “We know, fortunately, that most children who contract the virus will not be very sick, but we still do not know to what extent the children may spread it.”
In the study, Waterfield and colleagues identified, through analyzing those with fever, cough, and loss of sense of smell and taste, 76% of cases exhibiting symptoms.
He explained that with the addition of digestive symptoms, almost all cases of symptoms rose to 97%.
Dr. Waterfield said: “We found that diarrhea and vomiting were symptoms that some children reported, and I think adding them to the list of known symptoms is worth studying.”
An official at the Ministry of Health and Social Care said the symptoms were constantly being reviewed as it continued to understand the virus and urged those with major signs to get tested.
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