CM Mamata advices mask for kids amid rise in Adenovirus cases

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has advised children to wear masks amid a rise in adenovirus cases in the state. Bengal's fresh mandate for kids comes at a time when a number of children have been infected by adenovirus and many have succumbed to the infection.

Mamata Banerjee asked children not to panic and take necessary precautions. She said that out of the 19 children who have died due to adenovirus, 13 of them had comorbidities. The West Bengal CM said that one should immediately consult a doctor if a child has a cough and cold and be admitted to the hospital if he/she has a fever.

According to the United Nations(US) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(CDC), adenoviruses are a kind of virus that can cause mild to severe illness in the body, particularly in the respiratory tract. The virus infects children of any age, although they are more common among newborns and young children.

Adenoviruses can cause mild to severe sickness. The severe symptoms have similarities with the common cold or flu, fever, sore throat, acute bronchitis, pneumonia, pink eye, and acute gastroenteritis. Extreme conditions can result in consequences such as pneumonia and pharyngeal-conjunctival fever.