QCOSTARICA – A two-year-old girl is the youngest fatality of covid-19 in Costa Rica, among the 2,229 deaths registered up to January 4.
The little girl suffered from advanced cancer and other diseases, which were not revealed by the Ministry of Health in its confirmation of death.
With this death, three minors have died in Costa Rica from causes related to covid-19.
The first two, a nine-year-old girl and a 12-year-old boy, died in October. They also had background illnesses that complicated their condition by becoming infected with the new coronavirus.
The two-year-old died at the Hospital Nacional de Niños (Children’s Hospital) in San Jose. The date was not released to the press, only that the positive diagnosis with SARS-CoV2, the coronavirus that causes covid-19, was made on December 26.
“By having a very aggressive recurrence (return of cancer) and by being contaminated with covid, this became a final trigger for what was already expected in her with her underlying pathology. So, it is what we classify it as death with covid and not by covid,” explained the acting director of the Hospital Nacional de Niños, Carlos Jiménez, in statements to Teletica.com (television channel 7).
Up to Monday, January 4, the Ministry of Health reported 172,436 confirmed cases of covid-19 accumulated since March, when the first infected with the new coronavirus were registered in the country.
On Monday, 604 people are in one of the 28 hospitals of the Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social (CCSS) – Costa Rican Social Security Fund – that are treating covid patients; Of these, 256 (the highest number ever) are in an Intensive Care Unit (ICU).
On December 31, 13,742 minors were on the list of confirmed with covid-19; 2,648 remained as active cases; seven minors were in the ICU at the Children’s Hospital.
Although the highest mortality and morbidity reported by covid-19 occurs among adults, mainly older adults, children and adolescents are not exempt.
In this age group, several cases of the so-called pediatric multisystemic inflammatory syndrome, also known as MIS-C, a rare but serious complication associated with COVID-19, have already been registered.
It is a rare condition in children who have or have had covid-19. Its first manifestations occur two to four weeks after the first symptoms of the new coronavirus appear.
This syndrome presents as an inflammation of different parts of the body, including the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, skin, eyes, and gastrointestinal organs.
Last September, the executive president of the Board and Minister for Children and Adolescents, Gladys Jiménez Arias, launched a call to parents, guardians or those responsible for minors not to lower their guard.
“We are at a time of greater openings, even some public parks may open in a few days. Therefore, we make a new call to all people to take care of children and keep the bubbles,” said Jiménez.
The PANI – Patronato Nacional de la Infancia (children’s welfare agency) reports that more than half of the infections of children are due to epidemiological nexus, that is, when there are sick relatives within the minor’s social bubble.
Also, 18% of minors affected had contact with infected persons in other social environments, outside their bubble.
