Why do some people think that only one in a billion children are dying of COVID-19?

The usual suspects…
Are One in a Billion Children Dying of COVID-19?
In his video about face masks and face shields, Paul Thomas describes a study about pediatric patients with COVID-19.
“We identified 131 studies across 26 countries comprising 7780 pediatric patients.”
Hoang et al on COVID-19 in 7780 pediatric patients: A systematic review
What did they find?
They found that most of the kids in the study with COVID-19 recovered and had “overall excellent prognosis.”
“Seven deaths were reported (0·09%) and 11 children (0·14%) met inclusion for multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children.”
Hoang et al on COVID-19 in 7780 pediatric patients: A systematic review
Most, but not all…
“They looked at 131 studies that included over 7000 children from 26 different countries. There were only seven deaths out of the 6.4 million cases of COVID-19. Understand, that’s about one in a billion if you look at the world population. One in a billion children dying of COVID. Oh my gosh! No! You don’t need to be afraid for your child.”
Paul Thomas on FACE MASKS & FACE SHIELDS: Should We Wear Them?
One in a billion?
Even if you don’t know anything about statistics or epidemiology and haven’t looked at the study, you can guess that it wasn’t saying that only one in a billion children are dying of COVID-19!
Instead, most people will quickly see that there were seven deaths among 7,780 pediatric patients.
So among the children who got COVID-19, a relatively high percentage, at nearly 0.1%, died.
If only one in a billion children were truly dying of COVID-19, then only one child would have died! While the world population has indeed reached nearly eight billion people, keep in mind that they aren’t all children!

Anyway, so far, there have been over 70 pediatric COVID-19 deaths in the United States alone. So much for one in a billion children dying of COVID…
Should you be afraid for your child?
Are you getting advice about COVID-19 from Paul Thomas???
More on Kids Dying with COVID-19
- Study – COVID-19 in 7780 pediatric patients: A systematic review
- What to Do if You Have Been Exposed to COVID-19
- What to Do if You Have Been Diagnosed with COVID-19
- Is This a Horrible Vaccine Reaction?
- The Vaccine-Friendly Plan Book Review
- Do Anti-Vaccine Pediatricians Lose Millions Not Vaccinating Kids?
- Why Will Paul Thomas’ Patients Be Excluded from School in Oregon?
- The Moral Outrage of the Anti-Vaccine Movement
- Encyclopedia of American Loons
- When the Numbers Don’t Say What You Think They Say
- Dr. Paul Thomas: A rising star in the antivaccine movement
- Pediatrician Paul Thomas Has 15,000 Patients—and He Tells Them the Measles Vaccine Might Cause Autism
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