Limited Benefit of Facility Isolation and the Rationale for Home Care in Children with Mild COVID-19

Considering the mild degree of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in children and the enormous stress caused by isolation in unfamiliar places, policies requiring mandatory isolation at medical facilities should be reevaluated especially given the impact of the pandemic on the availability of hospi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of Korean medical science 2021, 36(5), , pp.1-6
Main Authors: Yun, Ki Wook, Kim, Kyung Min, Kim, Ye Kyung, Kim, Min Sun, Kwon, Hyuktae, Han, Mi Seon, Lee, Hyunju, Choi, Eun Hwa
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Brief Communication
Caregivers
Child
Child, Preschool
COVID-19 - prevention & control
COVID-19 - therapy
Female
Hand Hygiene
Home Nursing
Hospitalization
Humans
Infant
Infant, Newborn
Male
N95 Respirators
Patient Compliance
Patient Isolation - methods
Seoul - epidemiology
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Summary:Considering the mild degree of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in children and the enormous stress caused by isolation in unfamiliar places, policies requiring mandatory isolation at medical facilities should be reevaluated especially given the impact of the pandemic on the availability of hospital beds. In this study, we assessed the usefulness of facility isolation and the transmissibility of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 by infected children to uninfected caregivers in isolation units at a hospital and a residential treatment center in Seoul during August-November 2020. Fifty-three children were included and median age was 4 years (range, 0-18). All were mildly ill or asymptomatic and isolated for a median duration of 12 days. Thirty percent stayed home longer than 2 days before entering isolation units from symptom onset. Among 15 uninfected caregivers, none became infected when they used facemasks and practiced hand hygiene. The results suggest children with mild COVID-19 may be cared safely at home by a caregiver in conditions with adherence to the preventive measures of wearing facemasks and practicing hand hygiene.
ISSN:1011-8934
1598-6357
DOI:10.3346/jkms.2021.36.e45