UAE: Doctors feel children can get infected as schools reopen

 

The UAE's medical community is worried about the spread of infections and disorders among youngsters as schools prepare to reopen. Children who are returning to school are at risk of catching a number of serious diseases and infections, including tonsillitis, stomach bugs, and lice.

Dr Dinesh Naik, a paediatrician at the al-Sharq hospital in Fujairah, told Al Arabiya English that the return to school will result in more cases of fevers, coughs, and colds.

"All children's germs are spread as they interact with one another. The majority of these "germs" are actually viruses, and they can remain on surfaces like desks, tables, and doorknobs in the classroom, infecting other pupils.

The most prevalent classroom illnesses also include gastroenteritis, a stomach infection, eye inflammation, and hand, foot, and mouth disease, a virus that causes ulcers in the mouth and rashes on the palms and soles, according to Naik and Children's consultant at Health Bay Dubai Polyclinic, Dr Sadeem Bashiti.

Sadeem advised parents to vaccinate their children against the flu and the recently identified COVID-19, as well as educate them about hand washing and cleanliness, in order to stop the spread of illness when children return to school.

Temperature checks for students and employees had also been stopped, according to the NCEMA. Anyone with a high temperature was required to take a sick day and submit a negative PCR test after they had recovered. Facemasks are still necessary for enclosed environments, though.