A rare but serious and potentially deadly inflammatory syndrome believed to be associated with the coronavirus has now been identified in 15 children in Los Angeles County, officials said.
Of the children, 73% were Latino, representing a disproportionate burden for the ethnic group. Latino residents are the largest ethnic group in L.A. County, making up about half of the county’s residents. Nationally, about 70% of the cases of the inflammatory syndrome have been either Latino or Black patients.
Multi-system inflammatory syndrome in children, or MIS-C, can cause different parts of the body to become inflamed, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, such as the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, skin, eyes or gastrointestinal organs. Symptoms include fever, pain in the abdomen, vomiting, diarrhea, neck pain, rash, bloodshot eyes and exhaustion.
The syndrome has also been called pediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome, or PIMS.
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