Large Portion Of New COVID-19 Cases In Those Under 18

(CBS DETROIT) - The virus is spreading at an alarming rate in Michigan, with a large portion of those new cases in those under 18.

It's putting a renewed focus on MIS-C, also known as multisystem inflammatory syndrome.

About two percent of children who contract COVID-19 experience the rare condition.

Doctors say the state's recent spike will lead to more cases in children.

"We're very anxious about the possibility that we'll see more cases of MIS-C given how many more cases of COVID-19 we've seen diagnosed in our pediatric population. There've been several cases where the family didn't even know that the family didn't even know the child was sick at all and they still had been exposed to the virus, they had an infection, they had such mild symptoms that they never got tested and then they ended up developing MIS-C," said Rosemary Olivero, Pediatric Infectious Disease physician at Devos Children's Hospital.

State data shows through April 1, there were 99 confirmed cases of MIS-C, with five deaths due to complications with the condition.

State health officials say they are monitoring the situation due to the potential for severe outcomes.

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