Case of deadly children’s illness linked to COVID at Seattle Children’s
May 15, 2020, 5:17 AM | Updated: Oct 7, 2024, 9:58 am
Seattle Children's Hospital. (Seattle Children's courtesy photo)
(Seattle Children's courtesy photo)
The Seattle area has had at least one case of the deadly children’s illness believed to be connected to COVID-19.
Pediatric Multi-system Inflammatory Syndrome, which has killed three children and infected over 100 others in New York, appears to be an overreaction by the immune system to COVID-19. Left untreated, it can lead to serious heart problems, including coronary aneurysms, blood clots, and heart attacks.
The local case was at Seattle Children’s Hospital, in a child who had COVID-19 antibodies.
PMIS closely resembles Kawasaki disease, which is also a hyper-reaction by the immune system believed to be triggered by a virus, including coronaviruses. Dr. Michael Portman, who leads the Kawasaki Disease Program at Seattle Children’s, believes PMIS falls under the Kawasaki umbrella.
UW modeler concerned we are ‘flying blind’ as states begin to reopen
“My own personal opinion is that it is part of the Kawasaki system,” he said. “I believe that it’s just a more severe manifestation of Kawasaki disease.”
Like Kawasaki disease, symptoms of PMIS include a high fever (100.4 degrees or more) for four or more days, a rash, swollen, cracked lips, red eyes, swollen hands and feet, and swollen lymph nodes.
There are a few differences — some patients with PMIS on the East Coast have not had a fever, and have been having abdominal pain, which is not a Kawasaki symptom.
Portman noted that some patients coming into Seattle Children’s Hospital for treatment of Kawasaki are showing antibodies for COVID — another sign that there might be a connection between the three illnesses.
While PMIS may sound even scarier than COVID-19, Portman said that parents should not worry, noting that PMIS is very rare and not contagious.
“I really would consider Kawasaki disease as an uncommon disease, and I don’t think that an individual parent should be overly concerned … most of the patients, even if they do get it, we treat them and they do really well,” he said.
Immunoglobulin is used in an IV drip to treat Kawasaki disease, and Portman said this treatment greatly reduces the chances of heart problems.
Still, parents should be on the lookout for a persistent fever in conjunction with the other Kawasaki symptoms.
“If their child has symptoms for four or five days, especially if they have persistent fever, or if there are any very unusual symptoms — and they should also use their parental intuition — they should seek health care,” he said.
