Italian doctors have reported evidence linking the novel coronavirus with a Kawasaki-like inflammatory disease.
In an article published on Wednesday in the peer-reviewed weekly medical journal The Lancet, doctors in northern Italy said they found proof for COVID-19's suspected link with Kawasaki disease, an illness that can inflame and swell blood vessels that supply blood to the heart.
The new evidence came from Bergamo, the city at the center of the country's coronavirus crisis with the highest rates of deaths and infections in the country.
Medical records from the Papa Giovanno XXIII hospital showed that 10 out of 19 cases of Kawasaki disease in the past five years were reported between mid-February and mid-April.
The article reported that eight of these 10 had tested positive for COVID-19, with the remaining two possibly being false negatives, indicating a 30-fold increase after the coronavirus pandemic erupted.
The hospital's doctors wrote that there was a "strong association" between the coronavirus and Kawasaki disease and that this should be taken into account when considering how and when to ease lockdowns.
"Our study provides the first clear evidence of a link between Sars-CoV-2 infection and this inflammatory condition, and we hope it will help doctors around the world as we try to get to grips with this unknown virus. I have no doubt that Kawasaki disease in these patients is caused by Sars-CoV-2," said lead author Dr. Lorenzo D'Antiga, director of child health at the hospital.
Co-author and pediatric specialist at the hospital Dr. Annalisa Gervasoni, underlined that though only a "very small proportion" of children infected with COVID-19 developed symptoms of Kawasaki disease, "it is important to understand the consequences of the virus in children, particularly as countries around the world grapple with plans to start relaxing social distancing policies."
Around 25% of children with Kawasaki disease experience heart complications, according to the UK's National Health Service.
It is mainly found in children under five years old and its symptoms include fever, rashes, red eyes, red and puffy hands and feet, and abdominal pain.
Experts told an online briefing on the unknown syndrome they have detected between 75 and 100 children with it.
