In some children’s hospitals, the rare Covid-19 complication MIS-C is on the rise.

(CNN)-Catherine Dunn was really worried about her son Nolan, even though the doctor said she shouldn’t-the 13-year-old fever was “just a virus.”

There was no sore throat or cough. His Covid-19 test returned negative twice.

After that, what was a low-grade fever sneaked up to 104.4.

“At that time I knew something was really wrong,” she said. “The kids of some people spike those types of fever, my kids never do.”

Talking to his dad, he reminded her that his friend’s child had a “strange syndrome” called MIS-C. Multi-organ inflammatory syndrome In a child.

The doctor does not know what causes it. Children often have Covid-19 first, but not always.Does not have a new coronavirus Usually causes severe illness In children, but for a small number of children who continue to develop MIS-C, the condition appears to be inflamed in different parts of the body and can be serious.

Doctors know that while MIS-C is considered rare, various pediatric hospitals across the country have reported more cases in the past few months. is.

In the update released on Friday, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention By March 1, he said there were 2,617 MIS-C cases in the United States and 33 children had died. This is an increase since early February, when 2,060 cases and 30 deaths were reported.

“It scared the bejuses from me.”

In February, Dan looked up at MIS-C when his son was ill. online. Many of her son’s symptoms were consistent.

The CDC advises parents or caregivers to contact a doctor immediately if the child has fever, abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea, neck pain, rash, bloody eyes, or extra malaise. ..

Nolan’s stomach hurts to the touch. His lips were rough. His tongue was swollen and his eyes had turned bright red by the time they returned to the pediatrician’s clinic.

The pediatrician glanced at him and told him to leave the office and go straight to Anne & Robert H. Lully Children’s Hospital in Chicago.

“It scared me of anger,” she said.

When they arrived at the hospital, she asked Nolan to read a sign telling them where the valet parking was. He said he couldn’t. Everything was blurry.

“He has a perfect vision,” Dan said. “I said to him,’Oh, you’re really dismembered.'”

According to Nolan, the hospital has performed many tests.

“I had all the symptoms you could think of,” Nolan said. “I had the IV connected and I felt tired and painful. I felt my whole body was upset everywhere. I knew how to explain it and identify peculiar sensations. not.”

The doctor was able to identify the problem and determine that it was MIS-C. They treated him with a 10-hour immunoglobulin drip and started him with steroids.

“By the next morning he was significantly better,” Dan said.

According to the CDC, more than half (59%) of the reported MIS-C cases were male, and most were children and adolescents aged 1 to 14 years. Nolan is 13 years old.

MIS-C also had a disproportionate impact on children of color. The CDC said in the latest update that 66% of the reported cases were 842 Latino children or 746 non-Hispanic blacks.

MIS-C surge follows Covid-19 spike

Over the past few months, many children’s hospitals, not just Chicago, have seen more cases than in the early days of the pandemic.

Dr. Roberta Debiasi, Head of Pediatrics at the National Institute of Pediatrics in Washington, DC, said: “And in February, we got on the right track. There are days when a few incidents occur.”

DeBiasi believes that this surge is not due to a rise in variants or other phenomena.

The MIS-C surge usually follows the Covid-19 surge.

Her hospital’s interdisciplinary MIS-C committee noticed this trend, and as soon as she saw a surge in Covid-19 cases before and after the holidays, of children who knew it would come four to six weeks later. I’m ready.

“You could set your calendar on it,” DeBiasi said.

Perhaps it’s so rare that some pediatricians (and parents who come to them for help) don’t know exactly what they’re looking at. This was especially true at the beginning of the pandemic.

Tammy Hairston’s son, Kylie McBride, collapsed in May last year with a stomachache.

“I had never heard of MIS-C at the time,” Hairston said.

Initially, several different doctors, including her and an ER doctor, thought it was a routine stomach virus.

She said Kyrie’s fever wouldn’t go away with Tylenol and Motlin.

“I immediately went into panic mode because my son didn’t get sick,” Hairston said.

She was even more worried when Hairston had to return to the store for a second bottle of Tylenol and Motlin. In addition to the fever, he became lethargic but could not sleep. His heart was a race. His eyes began to turn red.

When a friend calls her to tell the story she saw news Regarding MIS-C, Hairston told his son to hurry to get dressed. They went to the hospital.

At Children’s National, doctors confirmed that Kylie had a MIS-C. He had never tested positive for Covid-19, but the test detected antibodies, suggesting a previous infection. Tests also showed that Kylie had inflammation in his heart.

“That was horrifying,” Hairston said. “But you just have to be a mom and you have to be strong for him.”

She said their family and friends prayed for him to improve.

“We didn’t really know what to expect,” Hairston said. “He is a child. He is my baby.”

Fortunately, a 12-hour infusion Immunoglobulin Working, he’s back to biking and playing basketball in the park, except for some follow-up appointments with a cardiologist. But that experience rattled Hairston, wondering why his son had this rare illness.

“I have a family, grandpa, and little kids who had Covid. I’m wondering why none of them got infected with MIS-C, but my son did.” Hairston asks. “I don’t want this for every child.”

Scientists also want to know.National Institute of Health Presentation On Tuesday, we plan to launch a new initiative to support MIS-C research.

Hairston enrolled Kylie in another study, hoping that other parents wouldn’t have to wonder why their child developed MIS-C. Maybe that they can learn from Kylie means they can’t understand it in the first place.

Life after MIS-C

12-year-old Caden Hendricks and his eldest son were infected with Covid-19 in November. About four weeks after the next day, Cayden complained of stiff shoulders, abdominal pain and high temperature.

Meyrin Hendrix took his son to the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, where he spent 12 days.

“One of the things that really scares the disease is that we don’t know exactly what’s going on and what’s causing the problem,” Hendrix said.

Caden has recovered. Still, doctors are not sure what recovery means and, if any, the long-term problems that MIS-C may pose.

Study published on Friday JAMA Neurology He said neurological symptoms were common in children hospitalized with Covid-19 or MIS-C. Most patients resolved their symptoms, but some developed a life-threatening condition. And a study published in March encourages doctors to follow up with these patients to make sure they have no cognitive, developmental, or physical problems.

Cincinnati Children’s Hospital is enrolling patients in a large NIH trial seeking to understand the long-term effects of severe Covid-19 in children.

“Most of our children are recovering quite a bit, but I’m not sure if this will have a particularly long-term effect on the heart. That’s what we are most concerned about and want to understand,” Grant said. Schladt, a pediatric rheumatologist at Dr. Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, said.

The hospital asked Caden to come back within 6 months to book a heart disease. He also needs follow-up by an ophthalmologist to make sure there is no long-term damage to his eyes.

Most children seem to be successful after taking MIS-C. Cayden missed the basketball season, but his team gave him a game ball and wore a “Cayden Strong” shirt in honor of him. According to Hendrix, he will be allowed to play basketball in the spring.

“He’s bouncing back and that’s all we can hope for,” he said.

Dr. Sam Dominguez also said his hospital, the Colorado Children’s Hospital, had a “dramatic increase” in the number of cases between December and February. This is part of a multicenter study that follows patients for up to a year to ensure that there are no long-term complications from MIS-C.

“The kids we see are pretty sick and about half to two-thirds need our ICU,” Dominguez said. “Thankfully, most of our children are doing very well with aggressive treatment.”

MIS-C is still relatively rare, but Dr. Larry Kosiorek, Deputy Medical Director of Infection Prevention and Management at Lully Children’s Hospital in Chicago, wants parents to keep an eye on MIS-C. ..

Even better, he said he wanted his parents to help keep their children from being exposed to Covid-19. Wear a mask that fits your child, wash your hands frequently, and maintain proper physical distance.

“I think all the kids are at risk,” said Kosiolek. “Like every aspect of this pandemic, people just can’t be comfortable.”