The two groups, in a joint statement on Tuesday estimate a total of 1,039,464 children have tested positive for COVID-19 since the onset of the pandemic in the U.S. according to CNN News.
“In the one-week period ending Nov. 12, there were 111,946 new cases in children, which is substantially larger than any previous week in the pandemic,” the joint statement said. “The increase tracks surges in the virus in communities across the U.S.”
AAP President Dr. Sally Goza called the data “staggering and tragic,” reports WTVR.com. She adds that “As a pediatrician who has practiced medicine for over three decades, I find this number staggering and tragic. We haven’t seen a virus flash through our communities in this way since before we had vaccines for measles and polio.
Historically, children have largely been asymptomatic patients, reports The Hill, meaning they do not show the typical symptoms of a COVID-19 infection seen in many adults, the exception being babies under one year of age or children with underlying conditions. These children are more likely to have a severe infection from the virus.
Additionally, the virus seems to have a disproportionate impact on Black and Latino children, says the report. Not only do these children have a higher number of infections – but they also are more likely to be adversely affected by economic harms and lack of access to education and other critical services.
Other impacts on children include family stress and mental health. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, visits by children and adolescents to the emergency department for mental health problems increased more than 24 percent during the pandemic.
With winter right around the corner, and people staying inside more, the AAP’s Goza emphasized the need to get a coronavirus vaccine approved. She also highlighted other immediate control measures.
“We urgently need a new, nationwide strategy to control the pandemic, and that should include implementing proven public health measures like mask-wearing and physical distancing,” Goza said. “This pandemic is taking a heavy toll on children, families and communities as well as on physicians and other front-line medical teams.”
