Data released by the state health department Tuesday indicate that 65 pediatric patients in Florida have been diagnosed with a rare but serious condition that develops in some children who have tested positive for the virus that causes COVID-19.
Also, Florida was just one of nine states that as of Thursday had more than 30 cases of the condition, officially called Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children or MIS-C, according to a federal report.
Nationwide, 792 cases of MIS-C had been reported in 42 states, New York City and Washington, D.C.
Meanwhile, 14 of the 65 Florida cases included in thestate pediatric reportdid not have diagnosis dates for MIS-C, which results in inflammation of organs such as hearts, lungs, kidneys, eyes and gastrointestinal organs. The other cases have diagnosis dates ranging from May 15, when a 14-year-old-boy in Miami-Dade County was confirmed to have the syndrome, to Aug. 18, when a 1-year- old boy in Palm Beach County was diagnosed with MIS-C.
The state updates the pediatric report weekly.