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Published on: February 14, 2019
The Pediatric COVID-19 Registry in Kuwait: Methodology and Results of Pilot Phase
Sarah Qabazard1, Dalia Al-Abdulrazzaq2, Hessa Al-Kandari1,3
1Department of Population Health, Dasman Diabetes Institute, Kuwait City, Kuwait.
Insights
Kuwait established a pediatric COVID-19 registry (PCR-Q8) to track severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in children. The pilot phase showed most pediatric cases were mild, with fever being the most common symptom.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Infectious Diseases
- Epidemiology
- Public Health Surveillance
Background:
- The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated rapid data collection on pediatric infections.
- Establishing a dedicated registry was crucial for understanding disease patterns in children.
- Kuwait aimed to create a robust system for tracking severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in its pediatric population.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe the establishment and pilot phase results of the Pediatric COVID-19 Registry in Kuwait (PCR-Q8).
- To analyze the mode of presentation, interventions, severity, and early outcomes of SARS-CoV-2 infection in children.
- To showcase the infrastructure and development process of a national pediatric disease registry.
Main Methods:
- The registry development followed best practices from "Registries for Evaluating Patient Outcomes: A User's Guide."
- Leveraged experience from a prior pediatric diabetes registry and global COVID-19 registries.
- Pilot phase included a convenience sample of 120 children, with data collected on demographics, symptoms, and clinical findings.
Main Results:
- Most children (69.2%) presented with mild COVID-19 disease.
- A majority (70.2%) had normal chest X-rays.
- Fever (77%) was the most frequent presenting symptom in pediatric SARS-CoV-2 cases.
Conclusions:
- The successful establishment of the PCR-Q8 registry provides a foundation for further pediatric SARS-CoV-2 research in Kuwait.
- This initiative can serve as a model for developing other disease-specific registries for children.
- Effective collaboration and adherence to international guidelines were key to the registry's rapid implementation.
Objective:
Establishing a pediatric COVID-19 registry in Kuwait (PCR-Q8) was deemed imperative during the pandemic to study children infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) focusing on mode of presentation, therapeutic interventions, disease severity, and early outcomes. This manuscript describes the rapid establishment of the PCR-Q8 registry showcasing an infrastructure of the development process and presents the results of the pilot phase.
Subject And Methods:
The registry was developed and implemented using the general key steps from a resource titled "Registries for Evaluating Patient Outcomes: A User's Guide" as a guide for best practice, experience from a previously established pediatric diabetes registry in Kuwait and several other COVID-19 registries developed globally. During the pilot phase, a convenience sample of 120 children was included, of whom 66 (55%) were male.
Results:
Experience and expertise from other COVID-19 registries; guidance provided by the World Health Organization; and effective collaboration and cooperation between the stakeholders, study group, and data enterers during these challenging times were critical for the development and implementation of the registry. Our results were similar to international reports which showed that most children presented with mild disease (69.2%), majority (70.2%) had normal chest X-ray, and the most common symptom at presentation was fever (77%).
Conclusion:
We anticipate the development of PCR-Q8 to be a stepping-stone for more in-depth investigation of SARS-CoV-2 infection in children in Kuwait and for the establishment of other registries.
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