Covid: Children in Sub-Saharan Africa dying at higher rate
A study has found that children in Sub-Saharan Africa are dying of Covid-19 at a higher rate than others areas.
"As opposed to children in Europe, when you look at data less than one percent of children die as an impact of Covid-19," says Head of UKZN's Discipline of Paediatrics and Child Health, Professor Refiloe Masekela.
"In Africa, we found that eight percent of children were dying from Covid-related conditions and the high-risk groups were very young children under the age of one as well as the old adolescents who has comorbid diseases."
The international multi-centre study was conducted in 25 hospital sites in South Africa, the Democratic Republic Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria and Uganda between March-December 2020.
A total of 469 children between the ages of three months and 19 years were monitored.
A quarter of them had pre-existing conditions.
Masekela led the study at the university's site.
"I think the message is simple. We really should target those children that have comorbidities, chronic lung disease, hypertension, other chronic diseases.
"Those children should really be targeted to get the vaccine to prevent them from having severe disease and dying."
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