DENVER, Colorado — A new syndrome that may be linked to coronavirus has been seen in nine states and is taking young lives in New York.
There are less than 100 confirmed cases of what is being called Pediatric Multi-System Inflammatory Syndrome (PIMS) in the United States so far. A majority are in the epicenter of the country's COVID-19 pandemic, New York.
Governor Andrew Cuomo said at least 73 kids in the city have PIMS and three children have died.
Colorado hasn’t reported any cases of the syndrome so far. But doctors here are still preparing.
"We have all been on the lookout for these cases ever since we heard about them," said Dr. Sam Dominguez, an infectious disease specialist at Children's Hospital Colorado.
Many of the symptoms of PIMS are very similar to Kawasaki disease, which doctors at the hospital have studied extensively.
"What's different is they often have much higher degrees of shock," Dominguez said. "Most of them are in the ICU they're having trouble with their blood pressure, they need medication to control their blood pressure."
According to NBC News, children can have high fevers, severe diarrhea, rash and often red eyes or conjunctivitis.
A direct link to COVID-19 has not been confirmed. But, Dominguez said many children with PIMS have also tested positive for the virus at some point.
This includes 13-year-old Anthony Lawson whose mother took him to the hospital in Seattle with what she thought were severe allergies.
"Once we got to children's hospital, we met him in Cardiac ICU where we were told it appeared he was in the middle of heart failure," said Theresa Lawson to a reporter from the hospital.
Anthony’s still in the hospital but recovering like most kids will.
Dominguez stressed that this is currently a “relatively rare condition” that parents shouldn’t panic about. But it's something he said doctors will keep an eye out for as the unknowns of this virus and syndrome are researched.
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