淺談新冠肺炎病毒Omicron變異株對兒童族群的影響

Clinical Manifestation and Impaction of Omicron Vriant of SARS-COV-2 on the Population of Children and Adolescents in Taiwan

台灣在2022年4月初開始進入以Omicron變異株為主的第二波大型社區流行，相較於前幾波疫情，兒童染疫人數呈現大幅且快速上升的趨勢，然而，雖然流行病學上與世界各國大致相符，臨床上兒童感染新冠肺炎雖仍以輕症為主，台灣兒童特有以嚴重腦炎表現的重症型態，卻來勢洶洶且伴隨高死亡率。目前以mRNA技術為主的疫苗，在5～11歲兒童族群已證實預防重症發生仍有足夠的保護力，因此提高兒童族群疫苗覆蓋率，是目前刻不容緩的議題。除此之外，對於腦炎致病的機轉、如何辨識易感受族群、腦炎發病的前驅危險因子，以及尋求有效的治療，仍是全體醫療人員須努力研究的方向。

In Taiwan, we are now experiencing a second wave of the SARS-CoV-2 epidemic, which is predominantly caused by the omicron variant in our community. According to epidemiology, it is not surprising that cases have increased rapidly in the population aged＜18-year-old. Although most cases are mild and self-limiting, several children infected by the omicron variant develop severe encephalitis, resulting in a high mortality rate in our country. Therefore, increasing the vaccine coverage rate in this population is an important and urgent concern. Furthermore, we should continue to investigate possible risk factors and effective treatment protocols for those suffering from severe encephalitis after infection with the omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2.