Coronavirus or just a common cold? What to do when your child gets sick this winter
It鈥檚 Sunday night, around 8pm, when your ten-year-old tells you she has a sore throat. She doesn鈥檛 have any other symptoms, and feels OK. You tell her 鈥渓et鈥檚 see how you feel in the morning鈥� and she happily goes off to sleep.
But you鈥檙e left wondering what you鈥檒l do if her throat is still sore the next day 鈥� or if she鈥檚 developed other symptoms by then. Should you get her swabbed for COVID-19?
Like most Australians, you haven鈥檛 recently travelled overseas or been in contact with anyone with COVID-19. And like most kids, your children often get coughs and colds during winter.
COVID-19 symptoms in kids resemble other respiratory infections
Generally, in their first 12 years, children can experience up to respiratory tract infections, or 鈥渃olds鈥�, per year. This number is highest among the youngest children.
One-quarter of all in children under five in Australia are for respiratory tract infections.
A recent showed COVID-19 symptoms in children were typical of most acute respiratory infections and included fever, cough, sore throat, sneezing, muscle aches and fatigue.
In general, COVID-19 in children is than in adults.
So how do I know if I should get my child tested?
If your child is unwell you can check their symptoms using healthdirect鈥檚 .
It will ask you questions based on what we know to be common symptoms of COVID-19, including whether you or the person you鈥檙e caring for have:
- a fever of 37.5鈩� or more; or
- symptoms suggesting fever (such as night sweats or chills); or
- an acute respiratory infection (for example, cough, shortness of breath, sore throat); or
- loss of smell or taste.
It鈥檚 possible these could also be symptoms of a different respiratory infection. But if your child is displaying any of these symptoms, the current recommend they stay at home and get tested.
You can also ask your GP if you鈥檙e not sure whether your child needs a test.
How likely is it my child will test positive to COVID-19?
Although Victoria is currently experiencing a spike, Australia has largely 鈥渇lattened the curve鈥�. In the past month there have been nationally each day.
Around the country, since the pandemic began, we鈥檝e performed and identified 7,521 cases.
This means fewer than 0.5% of tests have been positive. And only a small proportion of confirmed cases have been in children.
So in our current situation it鈥檚 much more likely your child鈥檚 fever or runny nose is caused by one of the common respiratory viruses, such as rhinovirus, that we see each winter.
How sustainable is all this testing?
We鈥檙e now performing more tests each day than we were at the height of the pandemic in late March.
Australia鈥檚 high level of testing has undoubtedly played a significant role in our successful response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
But we now must ask ourselves whether, with potentially diminishing returns, it鈥檚 sustainable to keep testing every child with a cold for the foreseeable future.
Let鈥檚 remember there are in Australia under 15 and each of them, particularly the younger ones, are likely to get multiple respiratory infections each year.
One of the risks of a continued emphasis on COVID-19 testing is that when a child returns a negative result, the parent thinks 鈥渁ll good, my child doesn鈥檛 have coronavirus, they can go back to school鈥�.
This risks spreading non-COVID-19 viruses to others, who then develop respiratory symptoms and need to be tested. Many of these viruses spread easily among children, especially where they鈥檙e in close contact, such as in childcare centres.
This may lead to an upward spiral of respiratory infections, particularly during winter when colds and the flu are traditional foes.
Keep sick kids at home
While testing is important, physical distancing and hygiene measures have been instrumental in flattening the curve.
And as a bonus, these measures may have led to decreased incidence of other viral infections in the community.
In our hospital in Sydney, we鈥檝e seen fewer hospitalisations for respiratory syncytial virus this year, a common cause of infant hospitalisations.
Nationally, in the first five months of 2020 there were 20,569 influenza notifications, compared to more than 74,000 at the same point last year.
Although restrictions are easing, Australians should continue to focus on physical distancing and hygiene throughout winter.
We need to see this pandemic as an opportunity to shift to a new normal: that is, staying at home when you鈥檙e sick, and keeping your child at home if they鈥檙e unwell (until their symptoms resolve).
We know it鈥檚 not always practical, but hopefully this 鈥渘ew normal鈥� will see more flexibility from employers in these circumstances.
Finally, yes, follow public health advice around getting tested for COVID-19. But let鈥檚 not view this as the only thing that matters.
This article was first published on and is co-authored by and from the University of Sydney.