Texas Children’s Hospital Doctors Fear Biggest COVID-19 Outbreak in Children

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) – Doctors at Texas Children’s Hospital said they were treating more than 35 children battling COVID-19 on Monday. They fear they will see more children in the coming weeks as schools reopen in Southeast Texas.

SEE RELATED STORY: Some Houston-area School Districts Defy Governor Abbott’s COVID Orders

ABC13 spoke with Dr Lara Shekerdemian, head of intensive care, who said it was too early to tell if the delta variant is more aggressive in children, leading to more serious illness. Either way, she said it was clearly more contagious.

WATCH: Unvaccinated 18-year-old in intensive care battles COVID

“We are very busy,” Shekerdemian said. “We have seen a real surge in COVID admissions over the past few weeks. There is no sign of this decreasing.”

Another doctor told ABC13 he was really worried about the trajectory of the COVID outbreak and what it might mean for healthcare in the greater Houston area.

“We’re really worried about what’s going to happen,” said Dr. Jeffrey Starke, professor of pediatric infectious diseases at Baylor College of Medicine. “If we get a flood of these patients like I said, it will affect health care. If you think your family is not affected by COVID, it may be true if your family is okay. If your family is okay. gets a different kind of illness for whatever reason, you could end up being very affected by COVID in terms of the services you can get for yourself or your children. ”

RELATED: Texas County Judge Issues Serious Warning Regarding Pediatric Intensive Care Beds

The Texas Department of State Health Services reported 52,931 deaths Monday during the pandemic. Its figures show that 59 people aged 19 and under have died.

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