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Source: https://www.kvue.com/article/news/l...ovid/269-623c92ed-742a-49a3-a067-414fdd58f36b
Central Texas doctors seeing rapid increase in kids being hospitalized with COVID-19
Over the past two weeks McLane Children's Medical Center has seen their hospital beds go from 1 to 2% filled with COVID patients, to 12% filled with COVID patients.
Author: Conner Board
Published: 7:00 PM CST December 31, 2021
Updated: 7:02 PM CST December 31, 2021
TEXAS, USA — As the omicron variant spreads, it is infecting people old and young in Central Texas.
“We've also seen kids with COVID that are being hospitalized, certainly in our hospital,” said Dominic Lucia, Pediatric Emergency Physician and Chief Medical Officer of McLane Children’s Medical Center in Temple. “That percentage has crept up rapidly in the last 10 days to two weeks.”
Lucia said just two weeks ago they only had about 1 to 2% of their hospital beds occupied by COVID-19 patients. Now he says the number is nearing 12% and that it’s a variety of kids being hospitalized.
“It can be kids that don't have a lot else [underlying symptoms]. We've seen some younger kids that have those significant viral symptoms that actually need some help, as far as breathing. And we see it also with kids with complex medical histories where it causes more problems,” said Lucia.
He said the kids who are not ending up hospitalized or are having shorter stays in the hospital, are the ones who have been vaccinated. Although he believes omicron is a less severe variant, he said it is risky to assume your child will be OK if they get infected.
“Our pediatric infectious disease experts are seeing kids that have long haul COVID symptoms and can have other issues secondary to COVID even weeks later,” Lucia explained...
Central Texas doctors seeing rapid increase in kids being hospitalized with COVID-19
Over the past two weeks McLane Children's Medical Center has seen their hospital beds go from 1 to 2% filled with COVID patients, to 12% filled with COVID patients.
Author: Conner Board
Published: 7:00 PM CST December 31, 2021
Updated: 7:02 PM CST December 31, 2021
TEXAS, USA — As the omicron variant spreads, it is infecting people old and young in Central Texas.
“We've also seen kids with COVID that are being hospitalized, certainly in our hospital,” said Dominic Lucia, Pediatric Emergency Physician and Chief Medical Officer of McLane Children’s Medical Center in Temple. “That percentage has crept up rapidly in the last 10 days to two weeks.”
Lucia said just two weeks ago they only had about 1 to 2% of their hospital beds occupied by COVID-19 patients. Now he says the number is nearing 12% and that it’s a variety of kids being hospitalized.
“It can be kids that don't have a lot else [underlying symptoms]. We've seen some younger kids that have those significant viral symptoms that actually need some help, as far as breathing. And we see it also with kids with complex medical histories where it causes more problems,” said Lucia.
He said the kids who are not ending up hospitalized or are having shorter stays in the hospital, are the ones who have been vaccinated. Although he believes omicron is a less severe variant, he said it is risky to assume your child will be OK if they get infected.
“Our pediatric infectious disease experts are seeing kids that have long haul COVID symptoms and can have other issues secondary to COVID even weeks later,” Lucia explained...