Doctors discuss back-to-school health issues including monkeypox, polio, and covid outbreaks.

As this school year begins, the country is dealing with infectious diseases.

So what do you need to know when sending your children to school?

Monkey pox

Doctors at Texas Children’s Hospital say they are concerned about monkeypox, even though it is rare in children.

There are more than 800 cases in Texas, but only two people under the age of 18.

“This is not COVID, let’s be clear. “This is not an airborne virus, so it’s not a potentially contagious infection in any way,” said Chief Pathologist Dr. James Versalovic. “We are dealing with a virus that requires very close and intimate contact.”

Polio

Polio was considered. It was removed in the US in 1994 But it’s now circulating in New York, according to wastewater monitoring.

“It’s a very deadly virus,” said Dr. Stan Spinner, vice president of pediatrics at Texas Children’s. “You don’t want to wait until your child has it because there’s no cure.”

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Children are typically vaccinated for polio at two, four, and six months of age, and then at four years of age.

Those who are up-to-date on vaccinations should be fine, Spinner added.

However, since Covid vaccines became available, doctors say they have seen more vaccine hesitancy and refusal for all vaccines than ever before. This new outbreak puts the unvaccinated at risk of polio.

“We’re definitely worried about where it might lead once it starts. So please, we don’t want to go through another polio epidemic, oh my goodness!” Spinner said.

covid

Currently, 62 children across Southeast Texas have been hospitalized with Covid.

The doctors agree that we are in a much healthier place than our school year years ago.

They say regularity is important, but balance it with vigilance to keep the spread low.

For peace of mind with a negative result, they suggest testing your child for any symptoms.

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Mental health

Mental health is on everyone’s mind and it’s probably affecting your child. Although, you may not be able to communicate like an adult would.

Just two months after the Uvalde shooting, Dr. Kathryn Gallagher says your children may know more than you think they do about school safety concerns and concerns.

• She advises parents to notice and manage their children’s emotions before you can avoid them, which should better prepare them to answer questions.

• Ask open-ended questions to start a conversation, she says.

“It’s like, ‘Oh, you’re worried about this, aren’t you?’ But you want to make sure you give them a place to participate,” Gallagher said.

• Listen when they share their feelings; Resist trying to “fix” it.

You want to do something to make them feel better, but sometimes it’s just nice to listen, say, ‘Hey, thanks for sharing that, it’s okay if I feel that way, I feel that way sometimes…we’re a team. We’ll get through this together,’ Gallagher said. “It shows that it’s okay to have feelings, and no matter what comes up, you have the confidence to let them control it.”

Thursdays from 6-7pm, Texas Children’s Hospital Behavioral Health experts will answer your questions about coping with back-to-school stress.

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