“I am deeply concerned by the numbers of hospitalized adolescents and saddened to see the number of adolescents who required treatment in intensive care units or mechanical ventilation,” Dr. Rochelle Walensky said in a statement. “Much of this suffering can be prevented.” The CDC boss’ plea accompanied a report by the federal health agency, which found that the rate of coronavirus-related hospitalizations in kids ages 12 to 17 surged between March and April. Among 204 teens, who were hospitalized mainly for COVID-19 between Jan. 1 and March 31, a third needed to be admitted to the intensive care unit, and 5 percent required mechanical ventilation, the data showed.