Community Corner
3 NY Children Dead From Coronavirus-Linked Syndrome
"Though rare, we urge parents to be vigilant," Gov. Cuomo said Saturday. A Westchester County boy is among the victims.
Three New York children, including a Westchester County boy, have died from a toxic shock-like syndrome health experts fear is linked to new coronavirus, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Saturday.
"We were laboring under the impression that young people were not affected by COVID-19," Cuomo said during his daily press briefing. "We're not so sure that's the fact anymore."
A teen from Suffolk County – according to Newsday – a 5-year-old boy from New York City and a 7-year-old Westchester County boy have succumbed to the disease that has infected at least 73 kids since COVID-19 first hit the state, Cuomo said.
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Sick children show symptoms not traditionally linked with COVID-19, which is why the New York Health Department only launched an investigation into the mysterious syndrome last week, the governor said.
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"It is very possible this has been going on for several weeks," Cuomo said.
Symptoms of the disease — similar to toxic shock syndrome and Kawasaki disease — include prolonged fever, abdominal pain, skin color change and decreased amount or frequency in urine, according to New York Health officials.
"Though rare, we urge parents to be vigilant," Cuomo said in a tweet.
The state is requiring that hospitals report any possible cases of this new syndrome that they find. Most children with this syndrome either had an active COVID-19 infection, state officials said, or tested positive for antibodies of the virus.
There have been 11 cases in Westchester, County Health Commissioner Dr. Sherlita Amler said Friday.
"While we have seen a cluster of cases ... this remains an infrequent possibility," said Michael Gewitz, the William Russell McCurdy physician-in-chief of Maria Fareri Children's Hospital in Valhalla.
Gewitz said the Westchester boy who died suffered serious neurological complications from the syndrome.
Reporting by Kathleen Culliton and Lanning Taliaferro
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