LDH: 13 Louisiana children diagnosed with COVID-19 related syndrome, one has died

BATON ROUGE, La. (KLFY) — According to the Louisiana Department of Health, 13 Louisiana children have been diagnosed with Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C); one child has died from the condition.

MIS-C is a condition where different body parts can become inflamed, including the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, skin, eyes or gastrointestinal organs. The cause of MIS-C is unknown but many children with this condition had the virus that causes COVID-19 or had been exposed to someone with COVID-19.

The CDC defines a case as MIS-C when:

• The patient is under the age of 21, with a fever, laboratory evidence of inflammation, and severe illness involving more than two organs that requires hospitalization; AND
• No other plausible diagnoses; AND
• Positive COVID-19 test, or exposure to a confirmed case, within the four weeks prior to the onset of symptoms.

Among the 13 cases in Louisiana:

• The age range is 0-19 years old.
• The median age is 11 years old.
• 6 of the patients are female and 7 are male.
• 4 are currently hospitalized and 8 have been discharged.
• In terms of race, 7 are African American, 3 are white and 3 fit in the other category.
• In terms of ethnicity, 2 are Hispanic and 11 are non-Hispanic.

The Louisiana Department of Health will update information on MIS-C each Monday on its coronavirus webpage.

Providers who have cared for or who are caring for patients younger than 21 years of age meeting MIS-C criteria should immediately report these cases to the Louisiana Office of Public Health Infectious Disease Epidemiology Team.