Omicron wave brings fewer child deaths than Delta: DDC
Thirty-two children (aged 0-14) have died from Covid-19 during the Omicron wave since January 2022, while a total of 45 died during the Delta wave (starting April 2021).
However, Covid infections in children are mainly symptomless so it is difficult to gauge the true number of child cases or mortality rate for each variant.
The omicron wave has produced 175,218 confirmed cases so far versus 253,809 during the Delta wave. Of these, 741 patients showed severe symptoms during the Omicron wave versus 1,790 patients during the Delta wave.
Divided by age group, children aged 0-4 have the highest mortality rate, at 23 deaths during Delta and 27 during Omicron.
In the 5-9 age group, there were nine deaths during Delta and two during Omicron. The 10-14 age group saw 13 deaths during Delta and three during Omicron.
The high Omicron mortality rate in children aged 0-4 was because young patients often show no or mild symptoms after infection, meaning parents often miss the symptoms until it is too late, DDC Epidemiology Bureau chief Dr Jakrat Phittayawong-anon explained.
“Children age 0-4 also have a higher mortality rate compared to other age groups because they are too young to receive the vaccine,” he added.
The highest infection rate since January 2022 is in the 30-39 age group, with 48.28 cases per 100,000 population, according to DDC data. Next highest is the 20-29 group followed by the 10-19 group.
As for mortality rate, topping the chart are those aged over 70, with 6.38 deaths per 100,000 population. Next comes the 60-69 group followed by those aged 50-59.
