A 14-month-old boy spent Christmas being ill after developing symptoms a mum says are linked to Covid, and she has warned other parents to watch out for the signs.
Danielle Robinson's son Remi developed a cough just before Christmas and spent the festive period vomiting - having lost his appetite.
And Remi developed a swollen, red eye - a condition which has been linked to Covid - known as orbital cellulitis reports the MEN.
Remi tested negative for Covid after his mum used a lateral flow test at home.
She took him to a walk-in centre where cellulitis was diagnosed - and he was sent home with antibiotics.
Orbital cellulitis is an infection of the fat and muscles around the eye. A nine-year-old boy from Bristol was 'almost blinded' after developing orbital cellulitis at the same time as contracting Covid-19.
(Image: Danielle Robinson)
Zac Morey ended up in hospital on a drip after suffering an allergic reaction to the virus.
Danielle warns other parents to book their child a PCR test or keeping them inside if they develop similar symptoms.
She said: "On Christmas Eve he was physically sick and then again on Boxing Day. He went off his food and had a bit of a cough so we thought he might have covid.
"I did a lateral flow test on him and that came back negative.
"The day after he woke up and his eye was bulging. It didn't look like conjunctivitis so I took him to the local walk-in centre.
"The lady on reception said it was the third child she had seen in the last few days with the same issue."
Danielle was told if Remi's symptoms didn't improve he may need to attend the hospital.
"He has been on antibiotics for a few days now and thankfully the swelling has gone down," she said.
"When I saw that story about the other boy who had it I knew it was exactly the same thing.
Remi was given antibiotics for the condition
"I am thinking that Remi might have had Covid as his grandma also had it around the same time that he developed symptoms.
"It was very strange. Remi has been lucky that his eye cleared up with oral antibiotics otherwise we were told he’d have to go into hospital on a drip."
Danielle said she wanted to make other parents aware of the condition, as she didn't know that it had been linked to coronavirus in some cases.
"I would say that if children have this issue with their eye there is no harm in getting them tested or keeping them inside for a few days," she said.
"If I had known that it had been linked to coronavirus I definitely would have kept him away from vulnerable relatives.
"I just want to make other parents aware of it.
"Had I assumed it was conjunctivitis and left it it could have got much worse. I am glad that I took him to the walk-in centre."
The World Health Organisation lists red and irritated eyes as an uncommon side effect of Covid-19, while various studies have linked orbital cellulitis and coronavirus.
