The State Department of Health is partnering with the NY Genome Center and Rockefeller University to conduct a genome and RNA sequencing study to better understand COVID-related illnesses in children and the possible genetic basis of this syndrome.
There have been 73 reported cases in New York where children – predominantly school-aged – are experiencing symptoms similar to Kawasaki disease and toxic shock-like syndrome, possibly due to COVID-19. The illness has taken the lives of three young New Yorkers — a 5-year old in New York City, a 7-year old in Westchester County and a teenager in Suffolk County.
New Yorkers should seek immediate care if a child has:
- Prolonged fever (more than five days)
- Difficulty feeding (infants) or is too sick to drink fluids
- Severe abdominal pain, diarrhea or vomiting
- Change in skin color – becoming pale, patchy and/or blue
- Trouble breathing or is breathing very quickly
- Racing heart or chest pain
- Decreased amount of frequency in urine
- Lethargy, irritability or confusion
“We now have a new issue that has come up in the fight against COVID-19 that is truly disturbing and it impacts our youngest New Yorkers,” Gov. Andrew Cuomo said. “The Department of Health is currently studying 73 cases of children experiencing inflammation of the blood vessels as a complication of COVID-19, and three young New Yorkers have already lost their lives as a result of this illness. The CDC has asked New York to develop a national criteria for this illness, and the state is also working with the NY Genome Center and Rockefeller University to conduct a study to help us better understand it.”
At the direction of Cuomo, the State Department of Health has issued an advisory about this serious inflammatory disease, called “Pediatric Multi-System Inflammatory Syndrome Associated with COVID-19,” to inform healthcare providers of the condition, as well as to provide guidance for testing and reporting. Health care providers, including hospitals, are required to report to the Department of Health all cases of pediatric multisystem inflammatory syndrome potentially associated with COVID-19 in those under 21 years of age.
