Children's Of Alabama Treating 27 COVID-19 Patients

BIRMINGHAM, AL — Children's of Alabama reported Wednesday that the hospital is currently treating 27 COVID-19 patients, five of whom are on ventilators. The numbers indicate that unlike the wave of COVID-19 from January, children have been more prone to show symptoms and be more severely affected by the virus, officials say.

"It seems this delta variant is a lot more infectious, a lot more contagious, and is hitting kids a lot harder," Children’s of Alabama Pediatric Emergency Medicine Fellow Dr. Alicia Webb said. "We see more and more who are getting sicker and actually needing that emergency care."

Webb said that while most COVID positive children will recover, the delta variant has shown recovery is not always a guarantee.

"Our kids who are having trouble breathing, our kids who are having COVID pneumonia, or who are needing oxygen can stay for a lot longer," Webb said. "They are breathing very very fast and very hard. Needing oxygen and needing support for their breathing or are so extremely dehydrated that they are needing IV fluids."

The Alabama Department of Public Health reported 2,242 new COVID-19 vases Tuesday, with a 7-day average of 3,947 new cases daily.

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