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Clinical and epidemiological characteristics of pediatric SARS-CoV-2 infections in China: A multicenter case series

Year: 2020

Type: article

Abstract: BackgroundAs of April 18, 2020, over 2,000,000 patients had been diagnosed with coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) globally, and more than 140,000 deaths had been reported.The clinical and epidemiological characteristics of adult patients have been documented recently.However, information on pediatric patients is limited.We describe the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of pediatric patients to provide valuable insight into the early diagnosis and assessment of COVID-19 in children. Methods and findingsThis retrospective, observational study involves a case series performed at 4 hospitals in West China.Thirty-four pediatric patients with COVID-19 were included from January 27 to February 23, 2020.The final follow-up visit was completed by March 16, 2020.Clinical and epidemiological characteristics were analyzed on the basis of demographic data, medical history, laboratory tests, radiological findings, and treatment information.Data analysis was performed for 34 pediatrics patients with COVID-19 aged from 1 to 144 months (median 33.00, interquartile range 10.00-94.25),among whom 14 males (41%) were included.All the patients in the current study presented mild (18%) or moderate (82%) forms of COVID-19.A total of 48% of patients were noted to be without a history of exposure to an identified source.Mixed infections of other respiratory pathogens were reported in 16 patients (47%).Comorbidities were reported in 6 patients (18%).The most common initial symptoms were fever (76%) and cough (62%).Expectoration (21%), vomiting (12%), and diarrhea (12%) were also reported in a considerable portion of cases.A substantial increase was detected in serum amyloid A for 17 patients (among 20 patients with available data; 85%) and in highsensitivity C-reactive protein for 17 patients (among 29 patients with available data; 59%), whereas a decrease in prealbumin was noticed in 25 patients (among 32 patients with

Source: PLoS Medicine

DOI: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1003130