Pediatric Coronavirus Cases Increased 16%

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Children’s Hospital Association are collaborating to collect and share all publicly available information on pediatric cases of SARS-CoV-2 virus cases and COVID-19 related fatalities.

As of September 3, 2020, more than 513,000 U.S. children have been infected with the new coronavirus, according to the latest weekly report that compiles state-based data.

And, the AAP released a new report that found 70,630 new child cases reported between August 20th and September 3rd. This data indicates a 16% increase in child cases over 2-weeks.

Additionally, in states reporting data, 0%-0.2% of all child COVID-19 cases resulted in death, and 18 states reported (0) child deaths during 2020.

“These numbers are a chilling reminder of why we need to take this virus seriously,” said AAP President Sara “Sally” Goza, MD, FAAP, in a September 8, 2020, press statement. “While much remains unknown about COVID-19, we do know that the spread among children reflects what is happening in the broader communities.”

Sean O’Leary, M.D.,  the vice-chair of the AAP Committee on Infectious Diseases, added: “This rapid rise in positive (coronavirus) cases occurred over the summer, and as the weather cools, we know people will spend more time indoors.”

“The goal is to get children back into schools for in-person learning, but in many communities, this is not possible as the virus spreads unchecked.

“Now we are heading into flu season. We must take this seriously and implement the public health measures we know can help; that includes wearing masks, avoiding large crowds, and maintaining social distance.” 

“In addition, it will be really important for everyone to get an influenza vaccine this year. These measures will help protect everyone, including children,” Dr. O’Leary said.

And, there were some very positive data released by the U.S. CDC last week.

In the USA, the overall percentage of respiratory specimens testing positive for the SARS-CoV-2 virus decreased from 5.5% during week #35, to 5.1% during week #36, reported the CDC on September 11, 2020.

And, based on death certificate data, the percentage of any fatality attributed to pneumonia, influenza, or COVID-19 (PIC) for week #36 is 6.3%. This is lower than the percentage reported during week #35 (9.5%).

This new data indicates a 33% reduction in PIC related fatalities ... in just 1-week.

Separately, the CDC reported there have been 188 pediatric fatalities related to influenza viruses during the 2019-2020 flu season, which is just ending in the USA.

Influenza vaccine information for the 2020-2021 flu season can be found on this webpage.

PrecisionVaccinations publishes research-based COVID-19 and influenza news.