In the Uk, we are asked to send our children to school, into classrooms that were bursting at the seem before the pandemic. Since children returned to classrooms after lockdown and the summer holiday
We are told Hands, Face Space, but what if there isn't any space?
Social media has been flooded with images from packed schools, where social distancing is impossible. Campaign and community group Parents United has been calling for schools to close.
Photo credit Parents United
Seven days after the onset of the parents’ symptoms, child one developed a mild cough, coryza, sore throat, abdominal pain, and loose stools, and child 2 developed mild cough and coryza. The third child was asymptomatic.
Some schools have been trialling daily testing to see if that will provided a way forward but.....
It would seem that children can be infectious, without ever having a positive test.
The Study Immune responses to SARS-CoV-2 in three children of parents with symptomatic COVID-19 by Shidan Tosif, Melanie Neeland from Department of Paediatrics, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia shows that children can be infected with #SARSCoV2, but still test negative.
Two parents infected their 3 children, who tested negative 11 times) Antibody blood tests were also negative, but saliva antibody tests were positive"
The Time Line for Symptoms And Testing
"Two parents (mother 38 years, and father 47 years) residing in Melbourne, Australia, attended a 3-hour wedding inter-state without their children, in early March 2020.
They returned home 3-days later and developed cough, coryza, and subjective fevers, followed by lethargy and headache for a total of 14 days
Seven days after the onset of the parents’ symptoms, child one developed a mild cough, coryza, sore throat, abdominal pain, and loose stools, and child 2 developed mild cough and coryza. The third child was asymptomatic.
Eight days after the onset of the parents’ symptoms, they were notified of an emerging outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 traced to the wedding. The parents were SARS-CoV-2 PCR positive on nasopharyngeal (NP) swabs taken the same day. Repeated NP swabs from the children were negative for SARS-CoV-2.
Physical distancing precautions were not feasible in the household. Child 3 had particularly close contact, sleeping in the parents’ bed throughout the period both parents were unwell. All family members recovered fully without requiring medical care"
Are children safe in school during the pandemic?
Parents from Long Covid Kids has been calling for the government to make schools safe. It is a complex conversation. Vulnerable children and the children of critical workers need access to school. Perhaps one answer could be to allow these groups to attend school, while others are educated online from home. This would significantly number in school and perhaps allow Hands, Face, Space
This study raises further concern about the safety of children in school.
LongCovidKids.org is a parent and patient-led campaign & support group for parents of children with Long Covid. Our story started with a short film on long-lasting symptoms of Covid in children & are working on The Long Covid Kids Study with PeopleWith