The NHS is launching a series of Long Covid services aimed at children and young adults.
Some 15 paediatric hubs will be rolled out across England to help families and GPs deal with the strain of the condition, which can last for months on end and cause a range of hugely debilitating symptoms.
While children are less likely to become severely ill from the initial effects of coronavirus, some have suffered long-term after effects – with parents telling Metro.co.uk about the horrific symptoms they have struggled to cope with earlier this year.
The hubs will pull together experts on common symptoms – such as respiratory problems and fatigue – who can directly treat youngsters, advise family doctors or others caring for them, NHS England said.
The clinics will also be able to refer patients to other specialist services and clinics.
More than a million people have so far reported suffering from Long Covid, according to the Office for National Statistics.
Some estimates suggest that 340,000 people may need support for the condition – including 68,000 who will need rehab or other specialist treatment – while an early study of children with Long Covid suggests they could be battling it for an average of eight months.
Symptoms include shortness of breath, ‘brain fog’ and extreme fatigue, with almost a third of sufferers saying it has a significant impact on their daily life – though children have reported distinct symptoms to most adults.
ONS data suggests that 7.4% of children aged two to 11 and 8.2% of those aged 12-16 report continued symptoms.
But despite some fears among parents, the Government has said that face masks are not compulsory in schools.
The new Long Covid hubs for children were announced by NHS chief executive Sir Simon Stevens.
Speaking at the NHS Confederation conference on Tuesday, he said: ‘The NHS has worked hard to care for 400,000 Covid patients requiring hospital treatment and keep essential services going through successive waves and we now need to step up action to deal with the legacy.
‘One of the major health challenges emerging from the pandemic is Long Covid with hundreds of thousands of people predicted to suffer debilitating health issues such as breathing problems and fatigue.’
He continued: ‘That is why the NHS is now going to invest £100 million in specialist services, including care for children and young people so that parents know advice is on hand through the new hubs to provide patients and their families with the help, support and care that they need.
‘This is just the latest example of how NHS staff have pulled out all the stops to provide care for those who need it throughout this terrible pandemic.’
There is already a network of specialist Long Covid clinics which have been given £34 million of funding.
Some £70 million of the new investment will extend these clinics and set up the paediatric hubs.
But there are fears that the cost to the health service will dwarf the funding put forward so far, with the MP leading an investigation into coronavirus telling Metro.co.uk that she fears long Covid could cost the UK around £2.5 billion a year.
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MORE : ‘Long Covid has wrecked my kids’ health, but I still can’t get them signed off school’
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