As studies on COVID-19 continue, new research shows that babies or infants tend to have milder illnesses compared to adults. According to Fox News' latest report, a new study reveals that infants under three months old who tested positive for COVID-19 mostly show only a few respiratory symptoms, including fever. They also tend to do well against the infection.
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Asymptomatic Patients Have Weaker Immune Response to Coronavirus: Babies Can Survive the Infection More?
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The study showed that 50% of the 18 infants involved, who were admitted to a hospital's general inpatient service, were not required to have intensive care, oxygen, or even respiratory support.
"While there is limited data on infants with COVID-19 from the United States, our findings suggest that these babies mostly have mild illness and may not be at higher risk of severe disease as initially reported from China," said Leena B. Mithal, a pediatric infectious diseases expert from Lurie Children's Hospital. Mithal is also the lead author of the new study.
"Most of the infants in our study had a fever, which suggests that for young infants being evaluated because of fever, COVID-19 may be an important cause, particularly in a region with widespread community activity," added Mithal. However, she clarified that it is still important to observe and study the bacterial infection found in young infants who still have a fever.
Asymptomatic patients have a weaker immune response to coronavirus
Gastrointestinal symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhea, and poor feeding, were found in six out of nine infants who were admitted to the hospital. The researchers said that upper respiratory tract symptoms of congestion and cough preceded the onset of GI symptoms. High viral loads were also found in the babies' nasal specimens despite having a mild clinical illness.
Meanwhile, another study claimed that asymptomatic patients have a weaker immune response against the coronavirus. According to another report of Fox News, the results of a study from China were published on the pre-print website medRxiv. However, the article has not yet been peer-reviewed.
Asymptomatic Patients Have Weaker Immune Response to Coronavirus: Babies Can Survive the Infection More?
Three hospitals in Wuhan, China, the origin of COVID-19 pandemic, examined blood samples of 1,470 coronavirus patients. Scientists conducted tests to determine if the patients have antibodies for the disease. 3,832 health care providers, who were not positive for the coronavirus infection, were also assessed.
3. Over half of patients who were classified as asymptomatic based on the lack of any experienced symptoms showed abnormalities based on lung CT scans, indicating possible damage even in these patients. pic.twitter.com/rGpFzIu5AB — Carl T. Bergstrom (@CT_Bergstrom) June 18, 2020
The study discovered that virus-specific antibodies against the coronavirus were found in 89% of the hospitalized COVID-19 patients, compared to 1% of non-COVID patients and 4% of healthcare workers.
"These data suggest that asymptomatic individuals had a weaker immune response to SARS-CoV-2 infection," said Ai-Long Huang, the study's lead author from Chongqing Medical University.
The scientists claimed that 21 days after the symptoms appeared, 10% of the coronavirus patients in the study lost their antibodies.
