What is MIS-C? Elizabeth Tracey reports

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MIS-C stands for multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children, and it’s on the rise in the US, recent data indicate. Aaron Milstone, a pediatric infectious diseases expert at Johns Hopkins, describes what’s known.

Milstone: This is a post-infectious phenomenon so kids can get Covid, they might even have an asymptomatic infection but then they present two, three four weeks after that with shock, and some of them have heart problems. They often will present with abdominal complaints like diarrhea, or severe abdominal pain. There have been teenagers that have very bad outcomes from this, even death. It’s not as common in younger kids but we are seeing younger kids now with this same post-infectious inflammatory syndrome.  :30

Milstone says parents must take the threat of Covid infection in their children seriously, as MIS-C is one possible consequence of infection. He notes that recent relaxation of many restrictions may result in many more cases, and urges parents to seek care if they suspect the syndrome. At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.