East Tennessee Children’s Hospital kicks off week-long discussion series to answer questions about COVID-19

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — As coronavirus cases soar, Knoxville-area hospitals kicked off a week-long discussion series to answer your questions about the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

A topic at the top of a lot of minds, children’s susceptibility to the virus.

Dr. Joe Childs, East Tennessee Children’s Hospital’s chief medical officer says although the virus typically doesn’t infect people under 18, it can be hard to identify if someone is sick with COVID-19 because symptoms vary so much.

Another concern with coronavirus in youth is “MISC,” which is an inflammatory disease that can show up even if someone didn’t show symptoms of COVID-19.

Dr. Childs stressed the importance once again of the five core actions, especially with the holidays quickly approaching. The five core actions are:

• Wear a mask or face covering
• Keep 6 feet apart from others not in your household
• Wash your hands frequently
• Sanitize frequently touched surfaces
• Stay home if feeling sick or unwell

The series continues through Thursday, next up is UT Medical Center. Dr. Keith Gray will be live Tuesday, at 2 p.m. on Facebook.