BOCA RATON, Fla. — Children and COVID-19 is top of mind for families in South Florida.
WPTV NewsChannel 5 interviewed Dr. Chad Rudnick, a pediatrician at BOCA VIPediatrics, to answer commonly asked questions.
"We are seeing children with COVID," he said.
Rudnick said perhaps the No. 1 question he receives is, are children getting COVID-19?
"The question that comes up from parents is, 'Well, what will that look like? How sick is my child going to be or how do I know if they have COVID?'" he said.
Rudnick said the answer is complicated, and it just depends.
"The symptoms can run on a spectrum from very mild to very severe," he said.
Also, he's often asked how it compares to the flu.
"The most important point to understand is this is not just the flu," he said. "COVID-19, it can be much more severe than the flu is."
Rudnick pointed to the level of spread, even with measures in place like masks and social distancing.
"COVID-19 is not the flu," he said. "It is a very serious virus, and for a lot of people, it may not be, but we don't know if it's going to be not serious for you, your child or for anyone else in your family circle."
Rudnick said people are often curious about the spread from children to adults.
"It's important to note children are not zero vectors," he said. "They absolutely can spread the virus to others."
Rudnick said they've had confirmed transmission from preschool-aged children to their parents.
"We have seen that children who are less than age 10, they spread the virus less, but it's important to note that less does not mean zero," he said. "For children over the age of 10, what we have learned is they can spread the virus, likely the same as an adult can do."
Parents, of course, are curious about the upcoming school year and whether or not it is safe to send kids back.
"As a pediatrician, as a father, I agree children should be in school," he said. "Being in school is the best way for the majority of children to learn."
But he said it has to be done safely with a drop in the positivity rate in the area.
"When we see numbers like that, it's inevitable that cases like that will come into a school," Rudnick said. "We want to try to avoid that. But until our numbers are decreasing, we think children should start the year online."
Parents are still curious about play dates and whether or not they are safe for families.
"The number that we look for is less than five children together in one area," he said.
Rudnick said the most important thing is to do them with like-minded families in a small group.
"I think that's the most important thing is to know that you can trust that family," he said.
He said, bottom line, it's important to realize this.
"We know absolutely children of all ages can get sick from COVID-19," he said. "There is no age group immune from COVID-19."
