Los Angeles County reported 6,918 new cases of COVID-19 and 316 additional deaths today, as health officials also confirmed the second local case of the COVID-19 variant B.1.1.7 first discovered in the United Kingdom, and four additional cases of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C).
The B.1.1.7 specimen, submitted by a clinical facility, was sequenced as part of routine surveillance by the county’s Public Health Laboratory. The first confirmed case of B.1.1.7 was logged on January 16, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.
Officials believe the B.1.1.7 and other variants are already spreading in the county, and they are continuing to test samples. B.1.1.7 is considered more contagious, but not necessarily more deadly, than the original strain of COVID-19.
The four additional cases of MIS-C bring the total number in LA County to 66 children, including one child death. All 66 children with MIS-C in LA County were hospitalized and 44% of the children were treated in the ICU. Of the 66, 32% were under the age of 5, 38% were between the ages of 5 and 11, and 30% were between the ages of 12 and 20.
Latino children account for nearly 74% of the reported cases, the department said.
MIS-C is an inflammatory condition associated with COVID-19, and symptoms include fever that does not go away and inflamed body parts, including the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, skin, eyes, or gastrointestinal organs.
The county’s COVID-19 hospitalization rates continue to decline, with 5,669 coronavirus patients hospitalized Saturday, down from 5,855 the day before, and 26% of those patients in the ICU.