Covid19 affects 123 babies, kids and youth

Hyderabad: The Covid-19 situation in Telangana is grim enough but a recent trend in the patient profile is proving to be a point of concern for medical professionals.

While adults over the age of 60 years, or those with pre-existing health conditions, are considered the most vulnerable, a total of 123 young people including babies, toddlers, pre-teens and those up to the age of 19 years have tested positive for Covid-19. They comprise a little more than 15 per cent of total 809 patients declared till Saturday.

The children and youth cohort among the patients was enough to force the government to open a children’s ward at Gandhi Hospital in Hyderabad, the designated facility for admission and treatment of all Covid-19 positive cases in the state.

Among the young Covid-19 patients so far are seven babies who are less than a year old, 49 who are between one and 10 years, 19 between 11 and 12 years, and 55 who are between 13 and 19 years. Of these, six from the one to 10-year age group and three from the large group of teenagers have been discharged, according to official documents.

A quick analysis of Covid-19 patient data shows that there were barely any cases from these age groups a few weeks after the first disease case was identified from Hyderabad on March 2.

However, there has been a rise in the number of young persons and children as well as babies falling prey to the disease since late March, and particularly in April.

Most of these cases, officials say, are because of the number of people in different families getting infected after one person in the family gets the disease first and then passes it on.