Rare Coronavirus-Related Syndrome Is Hospitalizing LI Children

LONG ISLAND, NY — Dozens of children across the state, including some on Long Island, have been hospitalized recently with a serious inflammatory syndrome that may be linked to the coronavirus.

According to the New York State Department of Health, 64 children across the state have been hospitalized by what they are calling "Pediatric Multi-System Inflammatory Syndrome Associated with COVID-19." The symptoms of this syndrome are very similar to Kawasaki disease, another rare inflammatory condition that affects children.

The symptoms of the new syndrome include a persistent fever, abdominal symptoms, rash, inflammation around the eyes and possible cardiovascular symptoms that can require hospitalization. The New York City Department of Health also reported "strawberry tongue" as a possible symptom. The symptoms can show up days or weeks after a child has contracted COVID-19.

Long Island coronavirus updates: Don't miss local and statewide announcements about novel coronavirus precautions. Sign up for Patch alerts and daily newsletters.

“Thankfully most children with COVID-19 only experience mild symptoms, but in some, a dangerous inflammatory syndrome can develop,” New York State Department of Health Commissioner Howard Zucker said. “While we continue to reduce cases through social distancing, discoveries like this remind us we are still in the middle of our response to this deadly pandemic.”

According to FOX 5, Cohen Children's Medical Center in New Hyde Park reported several patients presenting with the new syndrome. Six were admitted on Monday. There were 15 cases reported in New York City hospitals.

The state is requiring that hospitals must report any possible cases of this new syndrome that they find. The majority of children with this syndrome either had an active COVID-19 infection, the state said, or tested positive for antibodies of the virus.

Links to the syndrome and COVID-19 were first reported in the United Kingdom and Italy.

Parents should bring their children to pediatricians if they present symptoms.

“This is presenting very much like a common childhood illness, which it is not,” Dr. Katie Schafer, a pediatrician in Michigan, told the New York Times.