The Delta variant is an extremely contagious SARS-CoV-2 virus strain. It is reported to be over 2 times more contagious than the previous COVID-19 variants and even more capable of causing severe illness. It was first recognized in December 2020 in India, which quickly spread to the U.S. and is now one of the major COVID-19 variants. About 94,000 COVID-19 cases were reported in children within 7 days, as per the American Academy of Pediatrics. This article discusses the impact of the delta variant on children
According to recent studies, it is too soon to know if there are prominent differences in previous variants compared to Delta. It has also been reported that loss of smell and cough is less common with the Delta variant, whereas runny nose, headache, sore throat, and fever are some of the top symptoms.
Medical research states that the most common symptoms in children seem to be cough and fever. They may also have gastrointestinal and nasal symptoms, but those occur less often.
It has also been witnessed that many children with COVID-19 did not have any symptoms. This shows that the Delta variant may have been creating new or more symptoms in children than we saw during the early days of the pandemic.
Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in children (MIS-C) is one serious disease that all parents should watch out for as it is a serious and uncommon complication of COVID-19. It usually manifests in 2-5 weeks after the initial infection.
The symptoms of MIS-C are as follows:
If your children are found with upper respiratory symptoms or any of the other symptoms mentioned in the previous section, they need to be seen by a pediatrician and tested immediately. If your child has tested positive for COVID-19 but does not need hospitalization, you should ensure they are isolated and quarantined until they no longer show any symptoms. If possible, try to designate a bathroom for your child so that others in the house have little chance of contracting it. Wear masks inside the house and keep the windows open to allow fresh air flow. You should also monitor your child for fluid intake, breathing problems, and, most importantly, general appearance. If your child seems “off” to you, it may be a good reason for re-examination.
According to recent studies, there are around 50 million children in the U.S who are under 12 years and old and are not eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine. According to recent studies, those who have not been vaccinated are more vulnerable to the Delta variant. Clinical trials are still being conducted to find out how the vaccines will work in children. It could take several weeks before children under 12 are eligible to receive the vaccine.
Right now, prevention is the most powerful weapon available to stop the spread of the Delta variant among children. Therefore, as a precaution to protect the children from the virus and its potentially severe after effects, we should keep following all the sanitization and social distancing protocols.
COVID-19 testing is now available at the 8-2-8 Urgent Care Walk-in Clinic, Oceanside. Visit our urgent care clinic if you wish to get your child tested for COVID-19. Our medical professionals also provide expert pediatric urgent care services in a comfortable environment for your children.
