KNOXVILLE, Tennessee — Nearly 1,000 school-aged children are testing positive for COVID-19 every day, according to Tennessee Department of Health data.
That's about 10 times as many cases among children ages 5 to 18 as the state was reporting in early July.
"We're very busy right now doing contact tracing, just like we were in the wintertime surge," said Dr. Lisa Piercey, the state's health commissioner. "We are actively talking to schools right now and helping them whenever they need help."
Pediatric hospitalizations for COVID-19 are rising rapidly too. On Wednesday, TDH said 61 kids are currently being treated for COVID-19 in Tennessee hospitals with 16 in intensive care units and 6 on ventilators.
Last winter, pediatric hospitalizations peaked at 43 in late January.
If your child does contract COVID-19, Dr. Joe Childs of East Tennessee Children's Hospital said the suggestion is for them to schedule a checkup a few weeks later.
"It's important that you maintain contact with your pediatrician or your primary care provider," he said on Aug. 4, "The American Academy of Pediatrics is recommending a check a couple of weeks after COVID — after the isolation period is over — because there are some things that can show up after COVID that parents need to be alert to."
The Tennessee Department of Health said there have been at least 173 cases of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) reported in the state.
MIS-C, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine, is "an inflammatory reaction in the body about four weeks after infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus."
Symptoms can include "fever, rashes, red eyes, diarrhea and vomiting." It can also affect the heart, blood vessels and other organs according to Hopkins.