Infectious Disease

COVID-19 child hospital stays hit pandemic high

January 07, 2022

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Child hospital admissions for COVID-19 have peaked in recent weeks, according to CDC data.

For the week ended January 1, the COVID-19-associated hospitalization rate for children aged 4 years or younger was 4.3 per 100,000 – up from 2.5 per 100,000 in the week ended December 18, the data showed .

Pediatric hospital admissions for COVID-19 are at an all-time high. Source: Adobe Stock

It was the highest level of hospitalization in this age group in the 2 years of the pandemic, CDC director Rochelle P. Walensky, MD, MPH, noted Friday during a conference call with the media. The surge coincides with a nationwide surge in cases due to the Omicron variant.

The hospitalization rate for children aged 0-4 years is higher than the rate for older children aged 5-17 years (1.1 per 100,000).

Rochelle Walensky

“Unfortunately, we are seeing the number of hospitalizations for children aged 0 to 4 increasing – children who are not currently eligible for a COVID-19 vaccination,” said Walensky. “We are still learning more about the severity of Omicron in children and whether these increases in hospitalizations reflect a greater burden of disease in the community or the lower vaccination rates for these children under the age of 18.”

Over 50% of children ages 12-17 are fully vaccinated, but only 16% of children ages 5-11 are fully vaccinated, Walensky said.

Also on Friday, a new report published on MMWR estimated the Pfizer BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to be 91% (95% CI = 78-97%) effective against multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children, the serious disease that has been linked to SARS -CoV-2 infection.

According to the report, which included data from 24 children’s hospitals, all critically ill patients with MIC-C in need of life support were unvaccinated.

Last week, citing Omicron, the FDA approved boosters of the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine for children ages 12-15, a move that was supported by the CDC this week. Children aged 12-17 are now entitled to a booster vaccination.

“I strongly encourage parents to vaccinate their children and get a booster when they are 12 or older,” said Walensky. “A review of over 26 million vaccine doses in this age group was publicly reviewed this week by our advisory committee and demonstrated the overwhelming safety of the COVID-19 vaccination. Please, for our youngest children who are not yet vaccinated, it is vital that we surround them with people who have been vaccinated to protect them. “

References:

CDC. COVID-NET: COVID-19 Associated Hospital Admissions Rates. https://gis.cdc.gov/grasp/COVIDNet/COVID19_3.html. Accessed January 7, 2022.

Zambrano LD et al. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2022; doi: 10.15585 / mmwr.mm7102e1.

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