No evidence of 3rd COVID wave affecting kids: Health Ministry gives reasons

Data from the first and second waves of COVID-19 indicate that children mostly remain protected against the disease and there was no evidence of the third wave affecting them, said Dr Randeep Guleria, chief of Delhi’s All-India Institute of Medical Sciences and a key member of the Centre’s COVID Task Force.

He explained that the virus enters the body through ace receptors – a particular variety of protein – are far less in children’s bodies than in adults’.

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According to the Union Health Ministry, the theory of children getting infected in the third wave is only based on assumptions as kids were less impacted in first two waves.

The ministry is keenly observing COVID cases in children and most children who contracted the disease were asymptomatic, in some cases the virus can affect them in two ways.

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The AIIMS director said kids either reported pneumonia-like symptoms and in some cases, a multi-inflammatory syndrome has been found post recovery.

Explaining the second situation, he said, in very rare cases, six weeks after recovery from COVID-19, some children get a fever again, along with rashes and vomiting.

Children are generally asymptomatic and their infection is minimal or nil.

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According to the data, number of children being admitted to hospitals is low but the healthcare system is preparing for the third wave.

The government has still not allowed COVID vaccination of children but has given a green signal to phase II/III clinical trials of Covaxin, developed by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech, on children in the age group of 2 to 18 years.