COVID Data Tracker Weekly Review
Written by COVID-19 NEWS on May 13, 2021
COVID-NET: Trends in Hospitalizations in Children 5-17 years, including adolescents ages 12-17 years
Children ages 5-17 years have the lowest hospitalization rate of all age groups; however, children can experience severe illness and hospitalization associated with COVID-19. Hospitalization rates in adolescents ages 12-17 are comparable to those among children ages 0-4 years, and higher than those among children ages 5-11 years.
Among children ages 5-17 years, weekly COVID-19-associated hospitalization peaked at 1.3 per 100,000 persons in early January, then decreased to 0.4 per 100,000 persons in mid-March. However, data from late March and April show that hospitalization rates have steadily increased among children ages 5-17 years, increasing more than 200% since mid-March to 0.9 per 100,000 persons by late April. Hospitalization rates have increased in all pediatric age groups.
Rising hospitalization rates in children highlight the need for continuing prevention efforts, including mask-wearing and physical distancing. Now that COVID-19 vaccination is authorized for adolescents ages 12 years and older, implementation of COVID-19 vaccines for all eligible people is another critical tool to reduce the risk of COVID-19 hospitalization in children.
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