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By April 13, 2020December 20th, 2021No Comments
CMV Action illustration

13th April 2020 Update from our medical advisers

Please strictly follow the government recommendations at present for your own health and health of your children.
Some children/patients may have had additional advice about shielding and should be even more careful about going out. However, congenital CMV infection (on its own and without additional complications or severe features) would not require shielding.
There are some additional resources for parents and carers on the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health website: http://ow.ly/n1CS50zcr7k

Covid-19 and children

We understand that many families are feeling concerned about COVID-19 (the disease caused by the SARS-coronavirus 2). It appears that the virus causes only mild illness in children. The current NHS advice is that children who are more vulnerable to influenza because of health conditions may also be more vulnerable to COVID-19. However, the data from China does not show large numbers of severe cases in children, even if they have a weakened immune system.

Congenital CMV infection should not put children at increased risk of severe COVID-19 infection, as their immune system should be able to fight the virus in the same way as other children. However, some children who are more severely affected by congenital CMV may be more prone to chest infections in general as a result of their disabilities and parents should be alert to any red or amber features and seek a medical opinion if any of these are present.

We would strongly encourage parents to follow current national advice for reducing the risk of catching COVID-19. This information is regularly updated here.

Further information for parents about COVID-19 and when and how to seek advice is found on the Healthier Together website.

COVID-19 and pregnancy

At present, it appears that pregnant women are not more unwell than the non-pregnant population if they develop COVID-19 infection, and there are no reported deaths in pregnant women. Advice from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists is being regularly updated here. National advice (updated 16/03/2020), is that pregnant women should implement social distancing, as additional precaution.
As guidance is changing rapidly in the UK, we would advise women and their families to be alert to the current recommendations from national Public Health authorities.
Dr Chrissie Jones
Associate Professor in Paediatric Infectious Diseases