Doctors at the University of Kansas Health System answered questions on Friday morning about topics including children and COVID-19, as some areas are getting ready to start school.
In Wyandotte County, most students don’t start school until after Labor Day, and the Kansas City, Kansas, Public Schools will be in remote classes for the first nine weeks.
Dr. David Wild, vice president of performance improvement at KU Health System, said he had five or six calls last weekend from families, including children, who were having allergy symptoms. They were tested and about half had COVID-19. It’s possible some of the milder symptoms such as runny nose, cough and fever should be signs that indicate testing is warranted.
Dr. Dana Hawkinson, director of medical prevention and control at KU Health, said only about half of children COVID-19 patients in a study had fever and 20 percent had a runny nose.
“It is different from what we are used to,” he said.
It may present differently in children than in adults, he said.
Children may not have a fever, he said, but may still have COVID-19. They may have mild symptoms or none at all and still be able to spread COVID-19, he said.
“If school happens, your bubble is going to be expanded,” Dr. Hawkinson said.
The adults need to maintain as strict a bubble as possible especially if they have family members who are vulnerable.
“Going out and being in large groups, and going to parties, that is not a safe way to expand the bubble,” Dr. Hawkinson said.
People should understand who they will see, groups of 10 or less are better, outdoors, separated and masking is important, he said. If children going to school in person or are in sports or extracurricular activities, their families’ bubble will expand, also, he said.
They should continue to monitor symptoms of others they know, and then figure out if they were in contact with that person, he added.
“Your bubble expands to be the bubble of your children, if they live with you,” Dr. Wild said.
KU Health Systm reported 27 COVID-19 patients at the health system on Friday morning, compared to 26 on Thursday. Eight patients were in the intensive care unit and five were on ventilators. There were nine in the ICU on Thursday and seven on ventilators on Thursday.
According to the Unified Government COVID-19 website, there were a cumulative total of 111 deaths, an increase of two reported since Thursday.
Free testing offered
Heart to Heart International and the University of Kansas Medical Center are offering free testing events for people who are asymptomatic and essential workers. This is tied to a research study. They will be testing from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, Aug. 22, at La Fe en Jesucristo, 1500 Central Ave., Kansas City, Kansas.
For more information, visit hearttoheart.org/covid19testing.
The Unified Government Health Department is now collecting input on people’s experiences getting tested for COVID-19 in Wyandotte County. The survey is on the UG website at https://us.openforms.com/Form/ea97a450-3d74-4d86-8d1f-6e340d55cf7c.
The KU doctors’ news conference is online at https://www.facebook.com/kuhospital/videos/3464134200305460.
The UG Health Department sports order is online at https://alpha.wycokck.org/files/assets/public/health/documents/covid/08132020localhealthofficerorderregardingsports.pdf.
The Wyandotte County school start order is online at https://alpha.wycokck.org/Coronavirus-COVID-19-Information.
Wyandotte County is under a mandatory mask order and is in Phase 3 of the state’s reopening plan. For more information, residents may visit the UG COVID-19 website at https://alpha.wycokck.org/Coronavirus-COVID-19-Information or call 311 for more information.
The CDC’s COVID-19 web page is at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/index.html.