COVID-19 Tied to Severe Inflammation in Children

LONDON — Nearly 100 children from the United Kingdom developed severe inflammation possibly in connection to the coronavirus, according to the BBC.

Medical workers sounded the alarm in April after eight children from London fell ill, including a 14-year-old who died.

The BBC reports that most of the eight children did not have respiratory issues, but they did share high fever, red eyes, rash, general pain and swelling, citing doctors at Evelina London Children's Hospital.

Despite the absence of breathing or lung problems, seven of the original eight children were put on ventilators to ease heart and circulatory troubles.

Liz Whittaker at Imperial College London told the BBC doctors believe the mystery inflammatory disease is likely a "post-infectious phenomenon" related to antibody buildup following a COVID-19 infection.

Children make up between 1 and 2 percent of coronavirus infections.

The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health is cited as saying the syndrome "is exceptionally rare" and that parents in the UK need not confine their children as lockdown measures are eased.