Officials believe child who died after COVID recovery succumbed to flu complications

Sudden death of young child a month after coronavirus recovery had puzzled doctors; they now think he was stricken with myocarditis

By ToI Staff 14 December 2021, 10:59 pm Edit

Illustrative image: Medical staff in the COVID-19 isolation ward at Barzilai Medical Center in the southern city of Ashkelon (Gil Cohen-Magen/AFP)

Health experts believe a six-year-old boy from Netivot who died suddenly on Monday shortly after recovering from COVID-19 did not die as a result of the coronavirus. Rather, they think he was stricken with myocarditis — an inflammation of the heart — from flu complications.

The case is still being investigated.

Yosef Naim did not wake up Monday morning after going to sleep with a fever. His sisters were also hospitalized after suffering from shortness of breath and vomiting.

The case had puzzled doctors, who investigated if the death was related to his prior coronavirus infection a month ago.

The child’s father described Yosef as generally healthy, but indicated that he had suffered seizures in the past.