COVID-19 spread among children under 10 years old in Iran has become ‘very alarming’
The head of Tehran Province’s COVID-19 command center says ‘the mutated and dangerous virus has left its mark in all provinces of the country,’ and Tehran’s governor has also described the ‘increasing’ spread of this virus among people under 10 years old as ‘very alarming.’
Alirezai Zali, head of Tehran Province’s COVID-19 command center, announced on Monday, March 9, that the mutated coronavirus has now been identified in all provinces of the country.
Emphasizing that ‘the transmission speed, contagion rate, and mortality rate of this virus is very high,’ he warned that Tehran receives the most travelers from other provinces during the Nowruz holiday period, ‘which is the highest risk.’
Mr. Zali, stressing that ‘as we approach the final days of Esfand, compliance and social distancing discipline in Tehran decreases,’ added that reports indicate ‘in these current conditions, children are more exposed to risk.’
Anushiravan Mohseni Bandpei, governor of Tehran, also confirmed this issue on Monday evening and explained that ‘we are concerned about the spread of coronavirus among people under 10 years old, which was seven to eight percent in children in Bahman month but has now reached 11.1 percent, and this rate continues to grow.’
Tehran’s governor added in this regard that the hospitalization rate for people under 10 years old with COVID-19 was previously 2 to 3 percent, which reached 7 and 8 percent in Bahman month, and has now risen above 11 percent.
Mr. Mohseni Bandpei also spoke about statistics for all age groups, saying that ‘in the second week of Esfand compared to the first week, hospitalizations in intensive care beds increased by 4.7 percent and general bed hospitalizations increased by 17 percent, although the death rate decreased by 3.7 percent.’
Despite the claim that children are ‘less’ at risk of contracting coronavirus, on February 12 of this year it was reported that more than one hundred children died from COVID-19 in just one hospital in the city of Mashhad.
In September, Hossein Kermanpour, director of the emergency clinic at Sina Hospital in Tehran, reported an increase in the number of children infected with coronavirus and stated that out of 30,000 people under 18 years of age who have been infected with this virus, 300 have died so far.
Currently, children in most countries around the world are classified as the last group that will benefit from the coronavirus vaccine. Concerns have also been expressed in Iran regarding the vaccination of children.
Official COVID-19 statistics in Iran have always been subject to doubt and ambiguity, and Iran’s Medical System Organization has estimated the actual rate of COVID-19 infection and mortality in Iran to be up to four times higher than the official statistics announced by the Ministry of Health.
Source: Radio Farda
