Coronavirus

A Rare COVID-19 Complication Was Reported in Children. Now, It's Showing Up in Adults

"It may be rare, but we don't know. It might be more common than we think," one doctor said

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Doctors are warning that a rare but serious condition previously only reported among children diagnosed with COVID-19 is now appearing in some adults with the disease, NBC News reports.

MIS-A, or "multi-system inflammatory syndrome in adults," is the adult form of a dangerous condition first seen in kids this spring that caused inflammation around the heart and other organs and a rash. Kids often developed MIS-C, with the C standing for "children," weeks after their initial infections with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

Many doctors may not, in fact, be recognizing the condition in adults. Just a few dozen cases of MIS-A have been reported. And not all patients have obvious rashes.

Dr. Sapna Bamrah Morris, clinical lead for the Health Care Systems and Worker Safety Task Force, part of the CDC's COVID-19 response, detailed 27 cases in a report the agency published last week.

MIS-A's "true prevalence is unknown," Morris said. "We have to get physicians realizing that. It may be rare, but we don't know. It might be more common than we think."

Read the full story on NBCNews.com

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