Why in news?
- An eight-year-old boy from Chennai has become India’s first case of acute illness because of hyper-inflammatory syndrome associated with the coronavirus disease.
- This syndrome describes inflammation in the entire body, including vital organs, which leads to multiorgan failure and shock.
- There have also been reports of similar cases from the U.S. and in London.
- Available data says the disease is generally milder in children and adolescents compared with adults.
- The World Health Organization (WHO) has created a working group of experts from all over the world to begin investigating cases to establish evidence on whether Covid-19 can lead to multiorgan failure also in this age group.
Multisystem inflammatory syndrome
- Reports from Europe and North America have described clusters of children and adolescents with a multisystem inflammatory condition with some features similar to those of Kawasaki disease and toxic shock syndrome.
- Case reports and small series have described a presentation of acute illness accompanied by a hyperinflammatory syndrome, leading to multiorgan failure and shock.
- Initial hypotheses are that this syndrome may be related to COVID-19 based on initial laboratory testing showing positive serology in a majority of patients.
- Children have been treated with anti-inflammatory treatment, including parenteral immunoglobulin and steroids.
-Source: Hindustan Times
