20 Dutch children have serious coronavirus-related illness

Twenty children in the Netherlands have contracted a serious illness that appears to be related to COVID-19, NOS reports

The illness seems to be a combination of two known diseases: the rare Kawasaki syndrome, and Toxic Shock Syndrome. It is thought to be caused by a child’s immune system overreacting to coronavirus, but the link is not fully confirmed yet.

In adults, this heavy-handed response from the immune system is also associated with coronavirus, and can often worsen the course of the disease. In the Netherlands, none of the children with this disease had any underlying health conditions.

Of the 20 children with this illness, only 10 have antibodies against coronavirus. However, these tests are not 100% accurate, so generally the whole situation needs more research before anything concrete connections can be drawn.

After this disease came to light worldwide about a month ago, the NVK asked all paediatricians to report the illness when they diagnosed it. From that, the NVK has compiled a report on the symptoms of this disease.

The disease is present in several countries worldwide, and in France and New York City in the US, children have died from it. In the Netherlands, no children have died from it, but it is also not known from this study how well they have recovered.

Should the government change its plans to fully reopen primary schools on 8 June, or go ahead despite this disease? Let us know in the comments below.

Feature Image: DutchReview/Canva

Ailish Lalor
Ailish Lalor
Ailish was born in Sydney, Australia, but grew up by a forest in south-east Ireland, which she has attempted to replace with a living room filled with plants in The Hague. Besides catering to her army of pannenkoekenplantjes, Ailish spends her days convincing her friends that all food is better slightly burnt, plotting ways to hang out with dogs and cats, and of course, writing for DutchReview.

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