BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — A new study from Massachusetts General Hospital suggests that children may play a larger role in the silent spread of coronavirus.
The study was published in the Journal of Pediatrics on Wednesday.
“Children are less likely to become seriously ill from [coronavirus]; however, asymptomatic carries, including children, can spread infection and carry virus into their household,” the study said. “Understanding infectious burden and potential for transmissibility within the pediatric population is critical for developing both short — and longer-term — responses, including public health policies, to the current pandemic.”
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Researchers looked at 192 children between the ages of 0 and 22 who were suspected to have COVID-19. Forty-nine of the children were diagnosed with COVID-19. However, only 51 percent of those children had a fever. And if there were other symptoms, they were “non-specific.”
The study does say that while coronavirus infections tend to be mild or symptom-free in most pediatric cases, “some children develop a multisystem inflammatory syndrome.”
This study comes as schools consider how to re-open in the fall amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Earlier this week, Gov. Charlie Baker said that 70% of Massachusetts schools plan to do fully in-person learning or a hybrid model when school starts again in the fall.
All students in Massachusetts will also be required to get a flu shot if they want to enter school.
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