THE REVERE ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, AUGUST 20, 2021 Page 5 Area doctors weigh in on threat of Delta variant to children under 12 By Christopher Roberson A s the Delta variant continues to be the predominant strain of COVID-19, children under the age of 12 remain defenseless. “Kids are extremely vulnerable,” said Dr. Lael Yonker, a pediatric pulmonologist at MassGeneral Hospital for Children. “Pediatric cases are going up; offi cials forget that kids are unvaccinated.” In addition, Yonker said Delta behaves the same way in children as it does in adults. “There’s no difference in how the virus acts, it’s just as contagious,” she said. Yonker said the pediatric vaccine is still going through clinical trials; however, it is expected to be available by the end of the year for children ages six to 11. “There defi nitely is pressure to move that up,” she said. Yonker said the second wave of the vaccine will be for children ages two to fi ve and should be available by next summer. The fi - nal wave, for children under the age of two, should be available by next fall. In May of this year, Yonker led a study that looked at Multisystem Infl ammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C), an “extremely rare but serious” complication that can arise after a child recovers from COVID-19. The results of the study showed that particles from the initial COVID-19 infection can slowly infi ltrate a child’s bloodstream, causing MIS-C. “The team hypothesized that SARS-CoV-2 viral particles found in the gastrointestinal tract of children move into the bloodstream, leading to the hyper infl ammatory immune response characteristic of MIS-C,” said Yonker. In addition, 80 percent of children with MIS-C also develop acute cardiac pathology, which can only be treated with an aggressive course of steroids and intravenous immunoglobulin. “Our next plan is to develop a clinical trial to study the effect of larazotide on clinical outcomes in MIS-C,” said Yonker. “To go from characterizing a new disease, to understanding its cause, to identifying a possible new treatment is just incredible.” Dr. Lisa Dobberteen, a pediatrician at Cambridge Health Alliance, said Delta currently triggers at least 85 percent of the COVID-19 cases in children unRevereTV Spotlight G oodbye to this summer’s RevereTV interns! RTV is sad to see the internship programs come to an end. Isabella, Angie, Arianna, and Chris were a great addition for the busiest month of the summer season. With their help, RTV was able to step up coverage of community events as the interns assisted at fi eld shoots and also during post production. Many of the past month’s short coverage segments were edited by an intern. Having some extra hands for productions also helped with content for the RTV social media accounts. The RevereTV staff has truly appreciated each intern this year and looks forward to hopefully learning about what they all move on to accomplish. The Rossetti-Cowan Senior Center hosted a concert event last Tuesday. A mariachi band played for the seniors and RevereTV recorded the event. This recording is now available to watch on the RTV Community Channel abutting the usual morning senior concert episodes. The most recent concert recordings will air every day throughout the next few weeks and then be placed in the typical daily concert rotation. RevereTV will have coverage of a few community events: the Shirley Ave. Night Market, Salsa Dancing at The Revere Farmer’s Market, and the Moroccan Cultural Festival. Before the Moroccan Cultural Festival, longtime RTV Community Member Rachid Moukhabir visited the studio to record a promotional video with co-host Ed Deveau. The two spoke about the history of the festival in Revere and what to expect in the future. This promo aired on RTV through the week leading up to the event. Coverage from the festival, the free activities at the Farmer’s Market and the happenings from Shirley Ave. will soon be airing on the RevereTV Community Channel and posted to YouTube. Up next at RevereTV, you will soon see a new episode of “Cooking Made Simple” with Chef Kelly Armetta. Armetta will be back in the studio this week with something new for you to make in your own kitchen. This show always premieres on the Community Channel, Facebook, and YouTube. On RTV GOV, the next Revere City Council Meeting is Monday, August 23rd. Until then, you can watch the latest sub-committee meetings which are the License Commission, Public Art Commission, Conservation Commission, and the Commission on Disabilities. The RevereTV Community Channel is 8 and 1072 on Comcast and 3 and 614 on RCN. RTV GOV is channel 9 on Comcast and 13 and 613 on RCN. der 12. In terms of how the virus behaves in children compared to adults, Dobberteen said the biggest diff erence is that most children do not have preexisting health conditions. “As most children do not have underlying conditions that exacerbate COVID-19, they get a mild, fl ulike illness with cough, fever, sore throat, headache and fever,” she said. Dobberteen also said that without a test, it is nearly impossible to tell the diff erence between Delta and similar illnesses, such as respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and parainfl uenza. “As many children have mild respiratory symptoms with COVID-19, including the Delta variant as well as RSV and parainfl uenza, it may be hard to tell,” she said. “RSV may cause wheezing in young children under two, and parainfluenza may cause a croup-like illness with a barky cough.” Despite the rise of the Delta variant, Dobberteen agreed with state offi cials regarding the mandatory return to in-person learning. “Many children have had a very diffi cult time with remote learning and missing their teachers and peers over the past 18 months,” she said. “We know that children need to return to school in person and that they Gerry D’Ambrosio Attorney-at-Law Is Your Estate in Order? Do you have an update Will, Health Care Proxy or Power of Attorney? If Not, Please Call for a Free Consultation. 14 Proctor Avenue, Revere (781) 284-5657 ROTONDO George Revere (Pol. Adv.) City Councillor-at-Large Email: georgejrotondo@gmail.com Cell: 781-248-6972 VOTE TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 14TH FIORE AL HAVE YOU HAD ENOUGH? • Apartments - Air BnB’s • Special Permits & Variances Granted to Political Insiders • Out-of-town Developers Running Our City • Citywide Traffic and Congestion • Parking Meters and Inequitable Parking Sticker Ordinances • Bloated City Budgets Slapped on Taxpayers’ Backs • Unequal Representation across Ward 5 • Political Charades, Shenanigans and Double-Talk BECAUSE AL FiORE HAS! TURNING THE TIDE IN WARD 5 WWW.FiOREFORREVERE.COM can safely do so if the adults around them are vaccinated and everyone wears masks.”
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