Sick girl, 4, hospitalised with Kawasaki-like illness after falling sick when her carer mum caught coronavirus
A GIRL was hospitalised after contracting a strange Kawasaki-like illness soon after her mum caught the coronavirus.
Tayah Fernandes, 4, fell ill at the beginning of May with a stomach ache but was rushed to Royal Manchester hospital after breaking out in a strange red rash.
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It came soon after carer mum Shannon, 27, had tested positive for coronavirus - though she herself had no direct symptoms.
Doctors initially treated Tayah for constipation after she complained of a lack of appetite and stomach aches, but her condition worsened rapidly as her temperature soared and she woke up screaming during the night.
Worried mum Shannon immediately rushed her to A&E at Tameside Hospital, Greater Manchester for further tests.
Doctors carried out a chest X-ray and blood tests before sending them home to await test results, but mum Shannon was called back the next day and told to bring little Tayah straight back to hospital.
They were then told that the infection markers in Tayah's blood had shot up to 175, when the average is between zero and eight.
STRANGE RASH
Tayah then broke out in a strange red rash while in hospital.
Medical experts have warned in the last two weeks of a surge in children reporting these 'Kawasaki-like' symptoms, with some rapidly progressing into a severe illness.
Earlier today, The Sun reported that up to 100 children in the UK have contracted the "coronavirus-linked Kawasaki disease" - but experts have warned this is just the "tip of the iceberg".
Shannon told the Manchester Evening News: "We took her straight back up and they got her on an IV antibiotic drip.
"As the days progressed, she became swollen and came out in a rash. She got strawberry tongue."
It’s more worrying for a parent because this disease is something most people have never heard of, or know much about.
Worried mum Shannon, whose daughter contracted a strange Kawasaki-like illness
Tayah was treated with antibodies before being transferred to Royal Manchester Children's hospital, where she is still receiving treatment.
Shannon added: "They carried on treatments with steroids.
"She is still unwell, but her infection markers are coming down and doctors are pleased so far."
The mum-of-two also paid tribute to the heroic NHS staff helping her daughter back to health.
She continued: "I can’t thank Manchester enough, they have been brilliant since we arrived."
Shannon, a full-time carer, shared her daughter's struggle online to remind the public that the coronavirus was a "horrible" disease that can affect all ages.
She said: "I did the post to make other parents aware of how horrible this disease actually is.
"It’s more worrying for a parent because this disease is something most people have never heard of, or know much about."
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Shannon added: "After lots of cannulas fitted, having to go to theatre to have a line fitted, X-rays and numerous blood tests, I never want to see another parent go through what we have been through this past week."
The NHS first alerted doctors about a spike in kids being admitted to intensive care with a mysterious new life-threatening inflammatory syndrome last month.
Since then, experts have been frantically carrying out research to understand the condition - thought to have affected between 75 and 100 children in the UK, including a 14-year-old boy who has died.
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