The Minister of Health also shared that studies and analysis have been conducted on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on children and adolescents.
WHO Statistics showed that since the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak at the end of December 2019 to 25th October 2021, the mortality rate among children infected with COVID-19 is 0.03 per cent for children and adolescents aged 14 years and below, and 0.04 percent for children and adolescents aged 24 years and below. Yang Berhormat added, children and adolescents can also experience signs of infection or symptoms for a long period of time, or known as long COVID-19 or post COVID-19.
A syndrome known in Europe as ‘paediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome temporally associated with SARS-COV-2’ or PIMS TS, also known as ‘Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children, MISC, in the United States has been reported worldwide. The syndrome can pose complications to recovery from COVID-19 for children. This serious syndrome can cause inflammation to the heart, lungs, blood vessels, kidneys, digestive system, brain, skin or eyes of a child.
Inflammation of the heart muscle or myocarditis that can happen to anyone at any age is 37 times more likely to occur in children infected with COVID-19 compared to children not infected with COVID-19. MISC can also cause myocarditis in children. According to a study conducted by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, United States, US CDC, the risk of getting myocarditis is typically 146 cases per 100,000 people.
Source: Radio Television Brunei