There are still many questions around what is now called the “long Covid”.

It must be said that the symptoms are plethoric and of variable intensity.

But research is progressing.

It now recognizes that children and adolescents can be affected by symptoms of Covid-19 for several months.

And British researchers published a study on February 28, 2022, revealing that this long Covid affects few children.

20 Minutes

tells you more.

This major study, spotted by France Info, was carried out by three organizations: the London School of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, the British Health Agency and the Office of Statistics.

The researchers based themselves on questionnaires sent to parents of children attending primary school for children between 5 and 11 years old, and in secondary school between 11 and 18 years old.

In all, 3,375 parents and 2,045 minors responded.

Result: 1% of children aged 5 to 11 suffered from symptoms twelve weeks after a positive test, and 2.7% of adolescents.

In 2021, much higher figures had worried.

According to the World Health Organization, one patient in ten remained unwell after twelve weeks (all ages combined).

In February 2021, the UK Office for National Statistics estimated that of nearly 500,000 coronavirus-positive children in the UK, 12.9% of 2-11 year olds and 14.5% of 12-16 year olds were still presenting at least one symptom five weeks after infection.

A precise definition of long Covid for minors

Since then, the definition of long Covid in children and teenagers has been refined.

Researchers, long opposed on the issue, seem to have agreed recently.

Indeed, 120 scientists have published in the journal Archives of Disease in Childhood a definition of the long Covid of children.

Their criteria?

There are three of them: having a positive test for Covid-19, feeling at least one physical symptom, which cannot be explained by another diagnosis, for twelve weeks after infection, and finally, these inconveniences must have an impact on the daily life of the child.

Knowing that the symptoms can be very varied: sore throat, cognitive problems, bad mood, loss of taste, loss of smell...

Cognitive disorders come first, which may come as a surprise for a disease that attacks the lungs.

Interesting fact: the rate of children affected by headaches or skin problems differs little between those who have proof that they have had Covid-19 and those who do not.

The only symptom that makes the difference is the loss of taste or smell.

What are the links between long Covid and mental disorders?

More worrying, the study makes a link between long Covid and mental disorders.

Thus, 30% of children aged 5 to 11 with long Covid have at least one mental disorder, compared to 7.7% for the others.

For adolescents, the proportion is 22.6% against 13.6%.

But was this health problem pre-existing to the infection or was it caused by the Covid-19?

For the moment, no study can answer this, because the children had not been diagnosed before the pandemic.

This subject has therefore not finished being explored by researchers (and making parents shudder…).

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