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First County Child Tests Positive For COVID-19

A child living in the western portion of the county has been diagnosed with the coronavirus, the Chautauqua County Health Department said Tuesday.

There are now 44 confirmed cases, with eight being active, in the county. Thirty-two people have recovered and 131 cases are under quarantine and isolation orders by the public health director and being monitored.

Not all of those being monitored are confirmed to have COVID-19 but have either shown symptoms, are awaiting results or have risk factors.

There have been 1,451 negative test results to date.

According to the county map, there are now two cases in the west, 32 in the north county, four in the east and six in the south.

In its daily update, the county Health Department noted that adults continue to make up most of known COVID-19 cases. However, in the United Kingdom and Europe, a possible link has been reported between COVID-19 and a serious inflammatory disease.

Cuomo said Tuesday that New York is now investigating about 100 cases of the syndrome, which affects blood vessels and organs and has symptoms similar to Kawasaki disease and toxic shock. Three children in the state have died and Cuomo advised all hospitals to prioritize COVID-19 testing for children presenting with symptoms.

In New York City, which has reported at least 52 children sick with the syndrome, Mayor Bill de Blasio on Tuesday urged parents to call their pediatricians promptly if their children show symptoms including persistent fever, rash, abdominal pain and vomiting.

Children in the U.S. and in Europe have also been hospitalized with the condition known as pediatric multi-system inflammatory syndrome. In New York, the syndrome has been found across a wide range of young people. A 5-year-old boy, 7-year-old boy and an 18-year-old woman have died.

About 23% of cases have occurred in children under age 5, about 29% between the ages of 5 and 9, about 28% between ages 10 and 14 and 16% between the ages 15 and 19.

“This is a truly disturbing situation and I know parents around the state and parents around the country are very concerned about this, and they should be,” Cuomo said. “If we have this issue in New York it’s probably in other states.”

Dr. Juan Salazar, the physician-in-chief at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, said two patients there are believed to have the rare condition, which he said often appears to present itself two to four weeks after a child has recovered from COVID-19, often without ever being diagnosed with the infection. Yale Health has said it’s treating three children believed to have the syndrome.

Cuomo announced last week that New York is developing national criteria for identifying and responding to the syndrome at the request of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Known facts locally include:

¯ COVID-19 has been reported as possibly linked with a pediatric multi-system inflammatory syndrome disease;

¯ as Sunday, 85 suspected pediatric cases compatible with multisystem inflammatory syndrome have been reported in children in New York state;

¯ the illness has taken the lives of three children in the state and an additional two deaths are currently under investigation. These deaths are not in Chautauqua County;

¯ this syndrome has features, which overlap with Kawasaki Disease and Toxic Shock Syndrome. The child may have a persistent fever, abdominal symptoms, rash on the torso and groin, bright red swollen lips, swollen lymph nodes, and swollen hands and feet;

¯ the inflammatory syndrome may occur days to weeks after acute COVID-19 illness.

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