Cardiac Arrest Claims One More! 12-Yr-Old Collapses In School Bus; Doctors Look Into Possible Covid-Related Heart-Risks

It is a rather unusual sight in the medical space to see children suffering cardiac arrest unless they were born with congenital heart disorders. So the surprise was inevitable when a 12-year-old healthy boy suddenly collapsed in his school bus in Bhind of Madhya Pradesh.

The doctors who treated him believe that he may be the youngest victim of cardiac arrest in the state. The incident has raised concerns about the health conditions that have been taking a toll and claiming the lives of the elderly and young equally.

A Seemingly Healthy Child Collapses

Manish Jatav, a class four student, was reportedly in good health and did not show any kind of difficulties even as he had lunch in his school with his brother. However, by two in the afternoon, he collapsed as he boarded the bus back to his home. The bus driver immediately alerted the school authorities, who rushed the child to a nearby hospital. Even though they were able to act immediately, the doctors failed to revive the boy.

According to district hospital surgeon Dr Anil Goyal, "Manish was brought dead to the hospital on Thursday (December 15) afternoon. We gave him cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) but could not revive him." He further confirmed that the child had died of cardiac failure. The parents claim that their son did not have any form of health issues so far but have decided against conducting a post-mortem.

Possibilities Of Long-Term Covid Symptoms

A report by the New Indian Express quoted Dr Goyal saying, "Such incidents have risen after COVID-19 as per a study." While large-scale studies are yet to draw the connections between the rise in heart attacks and the long-term covid symptoms, doctors across the world seem to agree that Covid does impact cardiac functions and increases heart risks. This could be observed not just during or weeks after infection but almost up to a year later.

A study published in the Nature Journal in February 2022 quoted Ziyad Al-Aly from Washington University in St Louis, Missouri, and explored the concept by comparing the health records of over 1,50,000 people who recovered with two groups of uninfected people. The study derived that people who had recovered from Covid were 52 per cent more likely to have had a stroke than the control group, and their risk of heart failure increased by 72 per cent.

Many medical professionals agreed with these findings and claimed that SARS-CoV-2 causes inflammation of the arteries of the body, which could be anywhere — brain, heart, lungs, or other parts. It could further aggravate pre-existing conditions like blockages and clots and lead to irregularities. The virus was also found to be thrombogenic, which means that it has the potential to cause clots. So many cases of cardiac arrests are being understood as an aftermath of the reduced immunity caused by the pandemic.

Also Read: Man Collapses After Cardiac Arrest At Chennai Airport, CISF Jawan Saves Life By Giving CPR