Sama: Not all child hospitalisations linked to Omicron
The South African Medical Association (Sama) says while there has been a notable increase in the number of children being admitted to hospitals in some parts of the country, not all these cases can be linked to the new Covid-19 Omicron variant.
Sama says children are being admitted to hospital for various health-related issues.
In Gauteng, where the majority of coronavirus cases are being recorded, 19% of the 166 patients admitted with Covid-19 complications in Tshwane in mid-November were children aged nine and under.
Sama chairperson Dr. Angelique Coetzee says the patterns of high infections among children now are similar to those that were seen in the country's previous waves.
"In the beginning of any wave you will always see children getting sick first, and then the rest will come because children will normally give it to the elderly or to their mother or father or whoever who is staying with them.
"For now, currently, with Omicron diseases stay mild, we don't really admit them. So the cases in the hospital is not increasingly caused of Omicron. It is just that they detect it easily because if you go to a hospital for whatever reason, they must test you."
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