Post-Covid review in children finds severe heart damage
Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C), believed to be linked to Covid-19, damages the heart, says a medical literature review published in EClinicalMedicine, a journal of The Lancet.
The heart damage is so severe that some children will need lifelong monitoring and interventions, according to senior author Dr Alvaro Moreira of The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio.
“According to the literature, children did not need to exhibit the classic upper respiratory symptoms of Covid-19 to develop MIS-C, which is frightening. Children might have no symptoms, no one knew they had the disease, and a few weeks later, they may develop this exaggerated inflammation in the body,” Moreira said in a statement.
The team reviewed 662 MIS-C cases reported worldwide between January 1 and July 25. Eleven of the children died. Ninety per cent had an ECG test and 54% of the results were abnormal.
The heart damage included:
- Dilation of coronary blood vessels, a phenomenon also seen in Kawasaki disease.
- Depressed ejection fraction, indicating a reduced ability for the heart to pump oxygenated blood to tissues