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Clinical Characteristics of Children with COVID-19
Carmen Lok Tung Ho1, Peter Oligbu2, Olakunle Ojubolamo3
1Imperial College School of Medicine, Imperial College London, South Kensington, London SW7 2AZ, United Kingdom.
Insights
Pediatric COVID-19 cases often present with milder symptoms like fever and cough, with a significant portion being asymptomatic. Children appear to experience less severe illness compared to adults, but further research is needed.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Infectious Diseases
- Epidemiology
Background:
- The 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak rapidly increased global cases and deaths.
- Clinical profiles of COVID-19 in children were largely unknown early in the pandemic.
- Available data suggested children might experience milder illness.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the clinical presentation, management, and outcomes of COVID-19 in children.
- To synthesize current knowledge on pediatric COVID-19 cases.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of studies published from June 2019 to March 2020.
- Searched databases including EMBASE, MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, and ISI Web of Knowledge.
- Included eight eligible studies with 820 pediatric cases.
Main Results:
- 14.3% of pediatric cases were asymptomatic; 85.7% experienced symptoms.
- Fever (53.9%) and cough (39.3%) were the most common symptoms.
- Rhinorrhoea, pharyngeal congestion, diarrhea, and sore throat were less frequent.
Conclusions:
- Children are disproportionately affected by COVID-19 and generally experience milder illness than adults.
- Findings suggest a milder disease course in pediatric populations.
- Further population-wide studies are necessary to validate these initial findings.
Background:
In December 2019, the infection caused by 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) led to an outbreak in Wuhan, situated in the Hubei Province of China. Following this, there has been a rapid increase in the number of cases. On 12th March 2020, there were over 100,000 confirmed cases and almost 4,300 deaths worldwide. The clinical profile of children with COVID-19 is unknown due to the few number of cases reported. Currently, available data suggest they may have a milder form of illness.
Methods:
A review of the literature published from June 2019 to March 2020 was undertaken to evaluate the clinical presentation, management and outcomes of COVID-19 in in children. Data sources included EMBASE, MEDLINE, Cochrane library, ISI Web of Knowledge and references within identified articles.
Results:
We identified 303 potential studies, and 295 were excluded for reasons including duplicates, experimental studies and case reports. Eight studies were eligible for inclusion, including a total of 820 paediatric cases of COVID-19. Asymptomatic cases represented 14.3% (n = 117) of the total number of cases identified, and thus the remaining 85.7% (n = 703) experienced symptoms. Fever was the commonest symptom in 53.9% (n = 48) of cases, followed by cough in 39.3% (n = 35) of cases, and rhinorrhoea or pharyngeal congestion in 13.5% (n = 12) of cases. Diarrhoea and sore throats were less common symptoms, 7.9% (n = 7) and 9.0% (n = 8) respectively. Other symptoms, including fatigue, headache and dizziness were rare.
Conclusion:
Children are disproportionately affected by COVID-19 and are more likely to run a milder cause of illness following this infection compared to adults. This outbreak only started 3 months ago, therefore, further population wide studies are needed to validate these findings.
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