Increasing hospitalization of children infected by parents due to difficulty in transferring pregnant women with worsening corona symptoms

Due to the rapid spread of the new coronavirus infection, especially among the younger generation who are refraining from giving birth or raising children, it is difficult to find a transfer destination for pregnant women who have been infected and whose symptoms have worsened at hospitals in Tokyo. In addition, the number of hospitalizations for children infected by parents is increasing rapidly.

At the National Center for Child Health and Development in Setagaya Ward, Tokyo, before the fifth wave of infection, it was wondering if there was one pregnant woman infected with the new corona and hospitalized, but since July it has increased, and now there are four. I am hospitalized.

Pregnant women are at risk of becoming more severe when infected with the new corona, so they have been admitted to the hospital even if they are mild or asymptomatic.

However, due to the recent surge in patients, acceptance is approaching its limit, and it is possible that pregnant women will have to be treated at home.

In addition, if a pregnant woman in the hospital develops pneumonia, she will need to be transferred to a hospital that offers more advanced treatment for adults. , 19 hospitals refused to accept me because I couldn't handle childbirth or newborns.

In addition, as the infection spreads to the child-rearing generation, the number of children who are infected and hospitalized is increasing.By July 29, 49 people aged 0 to 16 were hospitalized, and 0 Compared to the previous month, when there were 20 people between the ages of 12 and 12, the number has increased nearly 2.5 times.

There are also four babies under the age of half a year who are thought to have been infected by their parents, and in some cases they have symptoms of fever and vomiting.

In some cases, parents are infected and are admitted to another hospital, and nurses take care of the baby by giving it milk while lying down to avoid infection.

Hitoshi Kato, director of the National Center for Child Health and Development, said, "For pregnant women, it is necessary to deal with sudden births and premature births, and the facilities that can be received are limited, but the number of hospitals that cannot be accepted due to the spread of corona infection is increasing. The idea that it is okay to increase the number of young people because they are mild is a big problem, and I want each person to have a sense of crisis. "