On Aug. 20, 2020, in the most comprehensive study of COVID-19 pediatric patients to date, Harvard Medical School researchers based at Massachusetts General Hospital and Mass General Hospital for Children provided data showing that children may play a larger role in the community spread of COVID-19 than previously thought.

The researchers found that infected children carried high levels of the virus, or viral load, in their respiratory secretions, even children with mild or no symptoms. Age did not affect the ability to carry a high viral load, which is associated with increased risk of transmitting the virus to others.The study was published in The Journal of Pediatrics.