Health officials say babies could run a higher risk of being severely affected by COVID-19.
"Infants can be more severely affected because their airways are smaller," says Dr. Nicholas Rister, Pediatric Infectious Disease Physician at Cook Childrens. "When there's swelling and inflammation, it becomes a bigger deal for them."
Dr. Rister says right now, there are still a lot of unknowns about how the virus affects babies.
"The biggest thing with infants is who's around them," he says. "The exposure's going to come from an adult."
In some cases, Rister says babies can even be born with the virus. And the newborn infant's immune system isn't always strong enough to fight COVID-19.
In Nueces County, a 6-week-old baby died from the virus last month.
The county recently made headlines again after health officials revealed that 85 babies have tested positive there since March.
In the four largest counties in North Texas, the Texas Department of State Health Services reports more than 100 COVID-19 cases in children ages one and younger. However, health department reports indicate the actual number is quadruple that.
That's why it's important for parents to stay alert, Rister says.
As far as symptoms go, he says says babies are trickier to read than kids. Dr. Rister says parents should be on the lookout for common symptoms - fever, cough, shortness of breath - while keeping an eye on other irregularities. For example, if a baby is constantly fussy, he says that could be a sign that it's sick.
"You always want to be a part of a baby's life-- they light up a room," Rister says. "I think that can still continue. It's just that, in this time more than ever, we really need to be aware of who's around those babies."
