Health experts are looking into reports that a coronavirus-related syndrome among children may be emerging in the UK, NHS England’s national medical director has said. Professor Stephen Powis said it was “too early to say” whether there is a link between the Kawasaki-like disease and coronavirus, but chief medical officer Prof Chris Whitty said it was “entirely plausible”. NHS England confirmed it had shared the warning through its incident teams to clinical commissioning groups and hospital trusts. Speaking at the daily Downing Street press conference, Prof Powis said: “We have become aware in the last few days of reports of severe illness in children which might be a Kawasaki-like disease. “Therefore, given that we have got a new presentation of this at a time with a new disease, the possibility – it is not a definite, we need to look for other causes as well – but the possibility that there is a link is certainly plausible.” According to the alert, which was originally shared with GPs in north London, children affected display signs similar to toxic shock syndrome (TSS), a severe illness associated with infections, and have blood markers in line with severe Covid-19 in children. “The advice to parents remains the same: if you are worried about your child for whatever reason, contact NHS 111 or your family doctor for urgent advice, or 999 in an emergency, and if a professional tells you to go to hospital, please go to hospital.” Professor Russell Viner, president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH), said parents should be reassured that children are unlikely to be seriously ill with Covid-19. “New diseases may present in ways that surprise us, and clinicians need to be made aware of any emerging evidence of particular symptoms or of underlying conditions which could make a patient more vulnerable to the virus.
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