A 3-year-old Missouri boy who was diagnosed with coronavirus has been partially paralyzed after suffering a stroke – and yet he is likely to make a full recovery, according to a local report.
Little Colt Parris lost the ability to move his arm and leg straight on Wednesday, hours after he tested positive for COVID-19 at the University of Missouri Women’s and Children’s Hospital, NBC affiliate KSN-TV reported. .
“I went to give him his Boo (plush animal) and noticed that he did not use his dominant arm to grab it,” his mother, Sara Parris, told the post.
“I knew something else wasn’t right.”
Doctors performed tests and found a blockage in the baby’s brain.
“The result came back and I looked at it and it was a clear stroke,” which cut the blood to the left side of the boy’s brain, said pediatric neurologist Dr. Paul Carney.
In 20 years of medical practice, Carney said he has never seen a case like this.
“What was different here was a child, and as I mentioned, there really is no other case like this,” he said.
Everything required surgery to address the clot and he recovered Thursday at Columbia Hospital, Mo.
He should recover completely and be able to go home next week.
Dr. Camilo Gomez, a neurologist at the hospital, said the doctors looked at the extent of the link between COVID-19 and possible neurological problems.
“The diagnosis of COVID is important because we believe that the reason why (patients) with COVID, including the child, have a stroke and a variety of other problems is that they tend to form clots,” Gomez told reporters.
The boy’s parents said they were grateful to his carers and hoped that their close appeal would raise awareness of precautions to reduce the spread of the virus.
“Masks and things like that, people have to wear them,” said Father Tim Parris.
“It’s important. If you don’t want your kids to go through this, people need to be more aware.”