A new sickness is going around in children that doctors believe is connected to coronavirus.
At least 15 children between the ages of 2 and 15 have been hospitalized in New York City with a mystery inflammatory disease similar to the rare blood vessel disorder Kawasaki syndrome.
Symptoms include fever, stomach pain, vomiting, rash, swollen lymph nodes, and inflamed eyes.
New York City Health Commissioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot, said, “We’re not sure what to make of this yet, and as I’ve said several times in the past, we’re still learning every day about how COVID-19 behaves not only from a public health point of view but from a clinical point of view,” according to CBS.
Dr. Aryeh Baer, a pediatric infectious disease specialist, said, “We can’t say for sure that it’s COVID, but it certainly would be a big coincidence. We’ve never seen anything like this before with all these kids with inflammatory syndrome.”
Dr. Baer has treated five children with symptoms in New Jersey but said none of those patients tested positive for coronavirus.
Experts said more cases are starting to pop up in New Jersey, Long Island, Boston, and Philadelphia.
“Even though it’s uncommon, compared to the hundreds of thousands of people who have contracted this disease, it’s still causing us concern,” New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said Tuesday.
