In this May 27, 2020 photo, Ana, a worker at the Frederickson KinderCare daycare center in Tacoma, Wash., wears a mask as she cleans playground equipment following use by a class, a task that is repeated several times a day. In a world weary of the coronavirus, many working parents with young children are now struggling with the decision on when or how they'll be comfortable returning to their child care providers. Frederickson KinderCare has been open throughout the pandemic to care for children of essential workers. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
Sarah Boden covers health, science and technology for 90.5 WESA. Before coming to Pittsburgh in November 2017, she was a reporter for Iowa Public Radio where she covered a range of issues, including the 2016 Iowa Caucuses.
Sarah’s reporting has appeared on NPR’s Morning Edition, All Things Considered, Weekend Edition Saturday and WBUR's Here and Now. She has won multiple awards, including a regional Edward R. Murrow for her story on a legal challenge to Iowa's felon voting ban.
In this May 27, 2020 photo, Ana, a worker at the Frederickson KinderCare daycare center in Tacoma, Wash., wears a mask as she cleans playground equipment following use by a class, a task that is repeated several times a day. In a world weary of the coronavirus, many working parents with young children are now struggling with the decision on when or how they'll be comfortable returning to their child care providers. Frederickson KinderCare has been open throughout the pandemic to care for children of essential workers. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
(Pittsburgh) – Since the beginning of September there have been 300 cases of the coronavirus among children, ages zero to 18, according to the Allegheny County Health Department.
While severe COVID-19 illness in kids is rare, the health department warns that cases among children will increase if the virus becomes more widespread. A total of 14 children in Allegheny County have been hospitalized since the start of the pandemic.
The department says that statewide there have more than 17,000 cases of COVID-19 among kids, birth to 19. That number includes 49 who have also had multisystem inflammatory syndrome. The rare complication of COVID-19 causes various body parts to become inflamed. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it can affect the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, skin, eyes or gastrointestinal organs.
“This is a very serious and can be life-threatening illness. And we really don’t know the long-term consequences yet of having COVID-19 in childhood or [multisystem inflammatory syndrome] in childhood,” health department director Dr. Debra Bogen said on Wednesday.
Jessica Hill / AP Photo
In this Thursday Aug. 27, 2020 photo, Assistant Director Tammy Cavanaugh, left, takes the temperature of Maverick Barbera has he is held by his mother Katrina Meli at Educational Playcare, in Glastonbury, Conn. All children entering the daycare have their temperature taken.
Though children are less likely to become ill due to the coronavirus, Bogen warned they can still spread it to more medically vulnerable members of the community, such as older family members.
“In our case investigations we have definitely seen outbreaks that involve children,” said Bogen. “In one outbreak that we’ve been monitoring for the last three weeks started with a teen and has now spread to 27 people.”
Bogen said families should consider forming so-called quarantine pods. Members of a pod socialize exclusively with each other, which lowers the risk of coronavirus exposure. When a child has a playdate with people outside of their pod, it’s recommended that they stay outside, wear a mask and wash their hands frequently.
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