Don’t minimize the long-term effects of COVID-19 on younger people | Letter to the editor

I have become increasingly concerned by the discussion regarding young people and coronavirus. While it is true that they are less likely to become seriously ill and die from COVID-19, it is extremely premature to state that they don’t need to be concerned. What we don’t know about this virus can fill volumes of medical textbooks. And it is way too early to think that we can predict the long-term outcomes for someone who has the virus and recovers.

Consider other viruses such as the varicella zoster virus. That’s the one that causes chicken pox. Many of us had chicken pox when we were kids. I picked it up at a birthday party. I got to stay home from school for a few days, but in general it was not a big deal – although it would have been for an adult. Then, many years later, I developed a very nasty case of shingles. Long-term consequences. What about polio? My dad had polio as a child and recovered quickly. I never even knew that he had it until he was in his 70’s and began to have trouble walking due to “post-polio syndrome.” Long-term consequences. The human papillomavirus (HPV) is another well-known virus. For most of the 79 million Americans who have been infected with it, it causes warts which can be annoying, but not life-threatening. However, we all know Michael Douglas’s story of developing head-neck cancer (a very aggressive type of cancer) due to his infection years earlier with HPV. Long-term consequences.

I could go on for pages, but you get my drift. We don’t know what long-term consequences might be lurking for young people who are infected with coronavirus today and recover very quickly and painlessly. Let’s try not to be so cavalier with their lives.

Jenni Casale

Palmetto