The rates at which babies are hospitalized from COVID varies based upon community outbreak, according to a new study. As such, when the population has a high positivity rate of COVID cases either from lack of access to vaccines or those choosing not to get vaccinated, babies will present with a higher number of COVID cases when hospitalized. Conversely, when positivity is low, COVID-positive babies are seen in lower rates.
Researchers from NYU Langone Health discovered that when babies were brought in the hospital for serious bacterial infections, if the population at large was experiencing an increase in COVID cases, the hospitalized babies too would have an increase of cases, according to EurekAlert!.
The study, which was published in the journal, Pediatrics, found that it was a high fever that made parents take their babies to the hospital, which is a common symptom of serious bacterial infections. However, it is also the most common symptom that presented when the babies tested positive for COVID as well.
According to the Mayo Clinic, of the cases in the United States, children represented 13 percent of the overall cases. However, the percentage of those cases that babies made up is unknown.
If infants are infected with COVID, they are more at risk than older children to have severe symptoms. This is due to the immature immune system and the smaller airways that babies have, making them prone to respiratory infections and breathing problems, per the organization.
From March through May 2020, New York City was the epicenter of COVID cases in the United States. During that time, according to ScienceDaily, 190,000 cases were reported. Of those reported cases, three percent were children. However, it is now believed that those cases have been underreported due to the lack of testing available at that time.
The study reviewed records of babies who were 90 days old or less who were admitted to NYU Langone Health hospitals and NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue Hospital with severe bacterial infections from March through December 2020.
Of the children who did test positive, babies were the ones that were consistently exhibiting severe COVID symptoms, according to the study. And a high fever was at the forefront of these symptoms.
Of the nearly 150 babies included in the study, 15 percent tested positive for COVID. Two of the 22 babies needed to be admitted into the ICU.
When COVID cases were on the rise in New York was when the highest number of babies tested positive in the hospitals and when the cases began to decline, they did in babies in the hospital as well.
Because of this, especially in light of the new Delta variant that is causing COVID cases to be on the rise yet again in children and adults alike, doctors should not be relying strictly on laboratory tests regarding what babies are hospitalized with, according to researchers. They should also be tested for COVID to ensure they are not at risk for the virus as well.
Researchers admit that the results of their study are not surprising.
According to EurekAlert!, researchers stated that it is "intuitive" what is being seen in hospitals versus society. However, having evidence to back up what was suspected by researchers is "reassuring."
With babies being most at risk for COVID, protocols need to be put in place across the board to test for the virus when admitted to hospitals not only when symptoms are consistent with COVID but when admitted for other illnesses as well. This will help to ensure that the proper treatment is being received and that nothing is missed when it comes to this potentially deadly virus for those who are unable to protect themselves.
Source: EurekAlert!, ScienceDaily, Mayo Clinic, Pediatrics