We are currently entering week 2 of isolation/quarantine with two kids under 3 with symptomatic covid. Here is how we got here. #tweetiatrician #mdphd #covid19 #deltavariant 1/n
Three weeks ago, my vaccinated dad left for a week long camping trip with 6 other vaccinated guys (including my uncle). They spent time outside, in the mountains, hiking, fishing, etc. They did not share tents. They did not share cars. 2/n
On 8/4 my parents, whom we have been in a bubble with since the start of the pandemic, came over for dinner to celebrate my birthday; on 8/6 they babysat my 2yo and 9mo so my husband and I could go out to dinner (we ate out doors, in a socially distanced setting). 3/n
On 8/7, they watched the girls in the morning so that my husband and I could assemble a new outdoor playhouse for our oldest. On both days, my dad had a tickle in his throat and some VERY MILD congestion, which we attributed to the poor air quality 4/n
(You may remember some national news headlines a week or two ago about Denver having the worst air quality in the world) 5/n
On the morning of 8/8, my dad woke up feeling worse; he also received a text from one of the guys he had gone camping with, who after not feeling great for a couple of days, had just tested covid+. My dad took a rapid test, which returned positive. 6/n
We went in to quarantine, which with a lawyer and a peds resident for parents, is challenging at best. On 8/11 the 9mos old developed a fever, cough, and congestion; the 2yo followed suit the next morning. 7/n
On 8/12, both girls tested positive for covid. In the meantime, 5/7 guys (remember, all vaccinated) from the original camping trip have also developed symptomatic covid (including my uncle). My mom now also has symptomatic covid. 8/n
Thankfully, no one has been hospitalized to date. My dad received monoclonal antibodies a few days ago, and is starting to feel much better. 9/n
But here’s the thing, we did everything right. We mask. We are vaccinated. We only allow our unvaccinated children to be around vaccinated adults, and they still got covid. 10/n
This delta variant is a beast, and must change how vaccinated parents of unvaccinated children think about their risk. Vaccination will prevent hospitalization and death, but it may no longer protect you from bringing covid home to your kids. 11/n
And in light of the active prohibition of mitigation efforts in K-6 schools, filled with children who cannot yet be vaccinated, this is an absolute disaster in the making. Children will get covid, and some of those children will be hospitalized and die. 12/n
All in all, my children will be ok. They have mild URIs and are at low risk, given their age for MIS-C. Only time will tell what long-term health risks covid will bring in our very young. But in the meantime, we MUST get an EUA for the covid vaccine in children 13/n
And we must be proactive about pursuing stronger and enforceable mitigation strategies. 14/n
Update: on 8/14 I developed a cough and congestion. On 8/16 I tested positive for Covid.
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