NEW YORK, NY — State health officials are investigating more than 100 cases of what could be a rare coronavirus-related illness in children that has led to the deaths of at least three young New Yorkers, ages 5, 7 and 18.
At his daily briefing Wednesday on the new coronavirus, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the state Department of Health is looking into 102 cases in which children are showing symptoms similar to atypical Kawasaki disease or toxic shock-like syndrome. Of the cases, 60 percent of the children with symptoms tested positive for COVID-19 and 40 percent tested positive for antibodies. Fourteen percent tested positive for both, Cuomo said.
Even more distressing: 71 percent of the cases resulted in intensive care admissions and about one in five required intubations.
“As a parent, I can tell you this is a parent’s worst nightmare,” Cuomo said.
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Parents “have to be aware” of the new illness, the governor said. Common symptoms include fever, abdominal pain, change in skin color, lethargy and confusion. About 57 percent of the children were between 5 and 14 years old.
And New York isn’t alone.
On Monday, state health officials sent an alert to 49 other state health departments; and Dr. Howard Zucker, the state’s top health official, held a nationwide call with all other health commissioners this week to discuss the new syndrome, Cuomo said. Fourteen other states — including California, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Pennsylvania — have also had reported cases.
The new wrinkle comes as the state prepares for three regions to reopen Friday and as hospitalizations, deaths, ICU admissions and intubations continue to trend downward, falling to mid- to late-March levels. The number of people who died of COVID-19 fell to 174 on Tuesday.
Cuomo noted the rate of decline is slower than the rate of incline, a harbinger of what could come if the state reopens too quickly.
Cuomo also released more data on antibody test results that showed positive signs for essential workers, such as those in transit, health care, police and firefighting.
About 20 percent of residents sampled in New York City and 12 percent of New York State population tested positive for antibodies, Cuomo said. But essential workers, who often come in contact with infected people, tested positive at lower rates.
Just 14 percent of downstate transit workers had the antibodies, Cuomo said. That number was 12 percent for downstate health care workers, 10.5 percent for the NYPD, and 3 percent for state troopers.
When it comes to corrections officers, a sampling of about 3,000 people showed just 7.5 percent tested positive for antibodies.
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