Children and teenagers now make up 14% of all coronavirus infections in Belgium, the Crisis Centre announced on Wednesday.
There has been a 33% increase in coronavirus infections among children aged 0 to 9 years old, virologist Steven Van Gucht announced. Teenagers (aged between 10 and 19 years old), for their part, are seeing an 11% increase in infections.
Taken together, they represent 14% of all new infections, on par with the age groups above them. The age group with most infections is currently 20-to-29-year-olds, according to the latest figures provided by Sciensano, representing 101,178 confirmed cases.
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Asked whether the role of children in the spread of the virus was underestimated, Van Gucht responded that “we have always stated that children can get infected with the virus and they can also pass the virus on.”
That's why it is important to be careful in case of contacts between children and older people.
However, “we also know from many studies from abroad that children are generally less infectious than adults,” he continued.
Belgium has counted 594,572 confirmed coronavirus cases since the start of the pandemic.
Jason Spinks
The Brussels Times
