tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
J Pediatric Infect Dis Soc
. 2020 Jun 19;piaa074.
doi: 10.1093/jpids/piaa074. Online ahead of print.
The Epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 in a Pediatric Healthcare Network in the United States
William R Otto[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Sarah Geoghegan[SUP] 1 2 [/SUP], Leila C Posch[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Louis M Bell[SUP] 1 3 4 [/SUP], Susan E Coffin[SUP] 1 4 [/SUP], Julia S Sammons[SUP] 1 4 [/SUP], Rebecca M Harris[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Audrey R Odom John[SUP] 1 4 [/SUP], Xianqun Luan[SUP] 6 [/SUP], Jeffrey S Gerber[SUP] 1 3 4 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Abstract
Background: Understanding the prevalence and clinical presentation of COVID-19 in pediatric patients can help healthcare providers and systems prepare and respond to this emerging pandemic.
Methods: Retrospective case series of patients tested for SARS-CoV-2 across a pediatric healthcare network, including the clinical features and outcomes of those with positive test results.
Results: Of 7,256 unique children tested for SARS-CoV-2, 424 (5.8%) tested positive. Patients 18-21 years of age had the highest test positive rate (11.2%) while those 1-5 years of age had the lowest (3.9%). By race, 10.6% (226/2132) of Black children tested positive vs. 3.3% (117/3592) of White children. Of those with an indication for testing, 21.1% (371/1756) of patients with reported exposures or clinical symptoms tested positive vs. 3.8% (53/1410) of those undergoing pre-procedural or pre-admission testing. Of the 424 patients who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, 182 (42.9%) had no comorbid medical conditions, 87 (20.5%) had asthma, 55 (13.0% had obesity, and 38 (9.0%) had mental health disorders. Overall, 52.1% had cough, 51.2% fever, and 14.6% shortness of breath. Seventy-seven (18.2%) SARS-CoV-2 positive patients were hospitalized, of which 24 (31.2%) required any respiratory support. SARS-CoV-2-targeted antiviral therapy was given to 9 patients, and immunomodulatory therapy to 18 patients. Twelve (2.8%) SARS-CoV-2 positive patients developed critical illness requiring mechanical ventilation and 2 patients required extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. Two patients died.
Conclusions: In this large cohort of pediatric patients tested for SARS-CoV-2, the rate of infection was low, but varied by testing indication. The majority of cases were mild, few children had critical illness, and two patients died.
Keywords: COVID-19; coronavirus; epidemiology; testing.
. 2020 Jun 19;piaa074.
doi: 10.1093/jpids/piaa074. Online ahead of print.
The Epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 in a Pediatric Healthcare Network in the United States
William R Otto[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Sarah Geoghegan[SUP] 1 2 [/SUP], Leila C Posch[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Louis M Bell[SUP] 1 3 4 [/SUP], Susan E Coffin[SUP] 1 4 [/SUP], Julia S Sammons[SUP] 1 4 [/SUP], Rebecca M Harris[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Audrey R Odom John[SUP] 1 4 [/SUP], Xianqun Luan[SUP] 6 [/SUP], Jeffrey S Gerber[SUP] 1 3 4 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 32559282
- DOI: 10.1093/jpids/piaa074
Abstract
Background: Understanding the prevalence and clinical presentation of COVID-19 in pediatric patients can help healthcare providers and systems prepare and respond to this emerging pandemic.
Methods: Retrospective case series of patients tested for SARS-CoV-2 across a pediatric healthcare network, including the clinical features and outcomes of those with positive test results.
Results: Of 7,256 unique children tested for SARS-CoV-2, 424 (5.8%) tested positive. Patients 18-21 years of age had the highest test positive rate (11.2%) while those 1-5 years of age had the lowest (3.9%). By race, 10.6% (226/2132) of Black children tested positive vs. 3.3% (117/3592) of White children. Of those with an indication for testing, 21.1% (371/1756) of patients with reported exposures or clinical symptoms tested positive vs. 3.8% (53/1410) of those undergoing pre-procedural or pre-admission testing. Of the 424 patients who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, 182 (42.9%) had no comorbid medical conditions, 87 (20.5%) had asthma, 55 (13.0% had obesity, and 38 (9.0%) had mental health disorders. Overall, 52.1% had cough, 51.2% fever, and 14.6% shortness of breath. Seventy-seven (18.2%) SARS-CoV-2 positive patients were hospitalized, of which 24 (31.2%) required any respiratory support. SARS-CoV-2-targeted antiviral therapy was given to 9 patients, and immunomodulatory therapy to 18 patients. Twelve (2.8%) SARS-CoV-2 positive patients developed critical illness requiring mechanical ventilation and 2 patients required extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. Two patients died.
Conclusions: In this large cohort of pediatric patients tested for SARS-CoV-2, the rate of infection was low, but varied by testing indication. The majority of cases were mild, few children had critical illness, and two patients died.
Keywords: COVID-19; coronavirus; epidemiology; testing.