Organizations criticize treatment of children with Long Covid
Published: Wednesday, Oct 30th 2024, 10:40
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Patient organizations have criticized the lack of understanding in schools and hospitals and the lack of school and medical care for children with Long Covid. They estimate that up to 18,000 children in Switzerland could be affected.
It is unacceptable that there is still no reliable data on Long Covid almost five years after the outbreak of the Covid pandemic in Switzerland, the three organizations Long Covid Kids Switzerland, Long Covid and #ProtectTheKids announced in a joint press release on Wednesday.
Their assumption regarding the number of long Covid cases in children and adolescents is therefore based on large-scale studies abroad. At a conservative estimate, one percent would be affected in Switzerland, i.e. at least 18,000 children and adolescents.
The data also showed that cases increased by around a third between December 2023 and March 2024. The most common long Covid symptoms included fatigue, tiredness, reduced cognitive ability, dizziness, headache, neck, joint or muscle pain, bowel or stomach complaints and worsening of symptoms after mild exertion.
Lack of knowledge and understanding
Medical care for those most severely affected is "completely inadequate". Hospitals have no resources for them and pediatricians are not familiar enough with the disease.
There is also a lack of understanding among adults: The illness is heavily psychologized and pressure is put on parents to have their child admitted to a psychiatric institution for children.
The organizations were also concerned that children had developed long Covid after the second, third or fourth Covid infection. The lack of protection in classrooms is therefore having a devastating impact. This is because CO2 sensors or air filters have largely disappeared.
Better care required
The patient organizations are therefore calling for recognition of the disease in schools, teaching and IV, adequate medical care for children and young people, support for families and technical aids for infection protection in classrooms.
They are also calling for mandatory training for healthcare staff on Long Covid and funding programs for research. They are calling on the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) to send an information sheet, which has been available on the website since September, to the target groups as quickly as possible.
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