A new 'orthocoronavirane' disease is on the rise, and health experts believe it has something to do with the coronavirus. Doctors from Banner Health in Arizona have confirmed a surge in cases of a multisystem inflammatory syndrome observed in children in the area.
The disease is called Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) and is said to be rare and potentially fatal. The illness involves inflammation of major organs such as the heart, lungs, kidney, brain, eyes, and other gastrointestinal organs.
According to Dr. David Moromisato, the chief medical officer at Banner Desert and Cardon Children's medical centers in Mesa, all pediatric clinics around the state are currently on the lookout for warning signs of MIS-C.
He adds that children, parents, and caregivers must know signs that point to the disease because it could get serious fast and can sometimes even lead to death.
According to physicians, early evidence shows that the multisystem inflammatory disease tends to affect young children to adolescents. Furthermore, the age range of the children affected is from two to early adulthood.
Is the 'Orthocoronaviranae' Inflammatory Disease Related to COVID-19?
Doctors speculate that it is, although there is no true evidence for it yet. Dr. Josh Koch, the division chief of pediatric clinical care medicine from Phoenix Children's Hospital, says that they are seeing markers of coronavirus in the pediatric patients. Still, a definitive association cannot be concluded yet.
However, what researchers do know is that the majority of the cases they've seen have indeed been infected with the virus at some point. Although children, in general, may appear as capable of fighting off COVID-19 pretty well, doctors say MIS-C could be a post-infection inflammatory consequence to the disease.
Dr. Koch says they see cases in children wherein COVID-19 hits them hard, and four to six weeks later, the inflammatory syndrome shows up. He thinks it could be possible that they've had the infection for a while, without symptoms or possibly exhibiting just mild ones. Then, after the multisystem inflammatory response shows up, they suddenly test positive for COVID-19.
As of May 28, there had been no cases of MIS-C in Arizona, says Dr. Moramisato. After that, patients with presenting symptoms of the disease started appearing in Phoenix and Tucson. He adds that even New York has about 100 cases, which is quite a small number when compared to adult patients.
What are the Warning Signs of MIS-C?
Symptoms of the inflammatory syndrome in children include fever, diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal pain, rashes, neck pain, swollen extremities, bloodshot eyes, red tongue, and cracked lips.
Moromisato says that evidence shows PCR tests for active coronavirus infection in these children mostly come out negative. However, serology tests for antibodies have mostly been positive, meaning they've had the infection sometime in the past.
Health experts warn that the disease may look like Kawasaki disease or toxic shock syndrome, but the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it is different. Dr. Koch says it seems to be a new disease, and parents must watch out for it as children ill with it could deteriorate very quickly.
Dr. Moromisato adds that if a child has a fever, is vomiting, has diarrhea, red eyes, and cracked lips, parents should seek medical attention immediately. The earlier the intervention for MIS-C, the better.
