Do kids transmit covid?

[MadameGazelleIsMyHomegirl]

Does anyone know of cases where kids have transmitted covid to adults or other kids? With schools reopening next month I’d like to know if anyone thinks their DC have passed the virus on to them, or if their DC caught it at school / nursery. Just interested if anecdotal experience supports what the govt are saying about kids not transmitting...

[Keepdistance]

I guess it is initial dose that makes a difference and the asymptomatic shedder is most likely to spread and kill people (assuming they shed at the same rate) because you wouldnt know to avoid them.
In a class of 30 = over 6 shed asymptomatically. You would have less than 15 getting a fever.
So even with 15 in a class you could have 3 asymptomatic.
Whereas if you meet up with one person they are 80% likely to be ok rather than asymptomatic.

We caught something and it was either a supermarket food delivery so outside.
Or from dd2 (4yo) but we got ill 28+ days later. Dd1 then caught it from me and dp and possibly dd2(?) as her nose started running but actually dd1 has gone throught that dtage too.
I would say whatever it was it was nasty both dd have coughed for many weeks. At this rate i think dd1 will still have a cough by jun 1.

[NeurotrashWarrior]

Thanks Siri!

[Siriusmew]

@NeurotrashWarrior www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(20)30287-5/fulltext
Here it is!

[avroroad]

Why would children not spread it?

I mean, logically it's the same virus whether you are 10 or 50, why would the virus not leave a child if they coughed etc?

It makes no sense to me

[MrsWooster]

As of yesterday, the Chief Scientific Officer for the DfE didn’t know...

[Porcupineinwaiting]

Our neighbours 4 year old infected his whole family. He was the sickest of all of them too.

[IsletsOfLangerhans]

There’s is so much research being done, but we are still in the early stages of understanding how the virus works and how it is spread. The blog article was jumped on by the media, who reported it in a very irresponsible way. The authors of that blog/BMJ review have repositioned their stance since, demonstrating how quickly research is changing the overall view. The day after the blog was published, another study was announced showing children have similarly high viral loads (still in pre-print, so can’t be taken as reliable just yet).

My main concern is how the media present the Science incorrectly, building up the hopes of everyone. They did the same with the vaccine hype. If anyone is seriously interested in understanding how to interpret what is being presented to them, there is a free article on New Scientist site called “ How to sniff out the good Coronavirus studies from the bad”

[Longtalljosie]

@CoronaLonaSad who had it first do you think in your family? A child or an adult?

[greathat]

Well we'll have a better idea by the end of June, unless the schools manage social distancing really well

[GoldenOmber]

they don’t confirm children don’t spread it

I didn’t say children don’t spread it and the authors didn’t say children don’t spread it.

I think everyone is agreed that we do not yet have the conclusive evidence we need about exactly what children’s role in transmission is, but I do find it promising that evidence seems to be pointing towards children having a lower role in transmission than was initially feared, especially when some governments were thinking of this as like pandemic flu.

[GoldenOmber]

it is says at best children aren’t super spreaders if they follow social distancing and good hygiene.

No, it doesn’t mention good hygiene or social distancing (unless I missed it). It says children can spread it, but seem to do so less than adults. Compared to flu where they spread it to adults loads.

[midnightstar66]

A df of mine (2 in fact had identical experiences) her dd (5) got it, well cant be 100% sure but she was unwell enough to need hospital with classic symptoms but whilst there they gave an option to take her home and ride it out (they managed to get temp down which df had been unable to do) but no test or admit her and test but she'd have to leave her there alone but they were fairly certain that's what she had. As the temp was now under control she opted to bring her home. The adults then both became horribly ill with classic symptoms also but not as bad as dd, they managed symptoms at home and their older dd was fine.

[IsletsOfLangerhans]

@GoldenOmber most of the references in that review are for other reviews or pre-print papers that haven’t been peer-reviewed and accepted as yet. Yes, there are a couple of published papers, but they don’t confirm children don’t spread it and one relates to a flu epidemic in 2008

[Selfsettling3]

@GoldenOmber I keep seeing people positive that bmj article as proof that children don’t spread it but if you read it is says at best children aren’t super spreaders if they follow social distancing and good hygiene.

[GoldenOmber]

Yes, it’s a review of peer-reviewed research. Is it not? It’s not a study in its own right nor is it claiming to be.

[IsletsOfLangerhans]

Anything that says ‘Viewpoint’ at the top of the article is exactly that.

[IsletsOfLangerhans]

That’s the same blog article, published as a review article and internally peer-reviewed. So doesn’t count I’m afraid.

[Al1Langdownthecleghole]

Re the sad deaths of Teachers, it is possible that some Teachers will have had a higher viral load due to repeated exposure to the disease, but it is equally as likely that those teachers contracted the virus from adults.

To give some context, it appears that there are half a million teachers in the UK, so roughly one in 14 of the population. The crude death rate amongst teachers is therefore lower than other sectors (although admittedly not age adjusted).

It’s obvious that more research is needed, but the numbers suggest to me that it is unlikely that children are superspreaders.

[GoldenOmber]

Blogs are not know to be reliable. You need to be looking at peer-reviewed, published research in medical/scientific journals if you want ‘proper’ valid Science.

Good news, the authors have now published it: adc.bmj.com/content/early/2020/05/05/archdischild-2020-319474

[GriseldaChop]

I'm sure the scientific adviser said in the briefing last night that children are as likely to spread it as adults, they just seem to have fewer symptoms/be less affected. I may have misheard but was surprised as felt that was contradictory to what has been said been previously.

[IsletsOfLangerhans]

The ‘children don’t spread Coronavirus’ news story at the end of last month, was largely due to a review article published on a paediatric blog. I had a scan through, so pretty much all anecdotal evidence. Blogs are not know to be reliable. You need to be looking at peer-reviewed, published research in medical/scientific journals if you want ‘proper’ valid Science.

[NeurotrashWarrior]

R0 did go up after Denmark "went back to a school" but of course we can't attribute it all to actual schools.

[NeurotrashWarrior]

Children have a slightly different immune system, I'm not clear of all the ins and outs but it slowly develops over childhood to that of an adult.

That's why it's actually good to get lots of normal viruses (and be filthy) as it lowers the later chances of getting autoimmune issues.

For example, adenoids are a part of babies's immune system that slowly shrink away and are useless by adulthood.

So it's possible they handle the disease differently and it's passed on differently; also though, children all differ a little anyway in their immune responses, just as adults do.

[NeurotrashWarrior]

@siriusmew do you have the link for that paper? One of the things being flung at teachers is that kids can't spread it. Which the Cambridge virologist on the bbc said on Monday was rubbish.

[bluefoxmug]

Schools have been shut for weeks now.
If children spread it we're surely not in a position to know that for sure?

this is an issue certainly.
there is not much data on children because
a) they have mostly been off school/childcare
b) they tend to have less symptoms and therefore are not tested

there is data though that shows that children do transmit it, but due to social distancing at a lower rate.