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Published on: November 7, 2020

Increased Pediatric Head and Neck Abscesses Following the COVID-19 Pandemic

Marco DiBlasi1, Ryan C Higgins2, Nicole Welch1

  • 1Creighton University School of Medicine, Omaha, Nebraska, USA.

The Laryngoscope
|July 9, 2026
PubMed

Insights

Pediatric head and neck abscesses significantly increased after COVID-19 public health measures. This rise in pediatric infections highlights potential long-term impacts on immune development and warrants further investigation.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric infectious diseases
  • Otolaryngology
  • Epidemiology

Background:

  • Concerns exist regarding COVID-19 public health measures impacting pediatric immune development and infection patterns.
  • Studies suggest a rise in pediatric abscesses post-pandemic, necessitating evaluation of head and neck abscess trends.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate changes in the incidence, clinical features, and management of pediatric head and neck abscesses.
  • To compare these abscesses before, during, and after COVID-19 lockdown restrictions.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective cohort study of 194 pediatric patients (≤18 years) with head and neck abscesses from 2017-2024.
  • Stratification into pre-pandemic, lockdown, and post-pandemic cohorts; incidence calculated via Poisson regression.
  • Comparison of variables using Fisher's exact and Kruskal-Wallis tests; national trends contextualized with Epic Cosmos data.

Main Results:

  • Abscess incidence rose 3.28-fold post-pandemic compared to pre-pandemic levels (p < 0.0001).
  • Increased incidence observed across all head and neck abscess subtypes, including cervical, peritonsillar, deep neck space, and intracranial.
  • Abscess size increased during lockdown; post-pandemic patients required more repeat surgeries (17.4% vs. 5.0%).

Conclusions:

  • Pediatric head and neck abscesses significantly increased following the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • The rise in abscesses was sustained and independent of demographic or treatment factors.
  • Further surveillance of pediatric host susceptibility post-pandemic is recommended.
Abstract

Keywords:
COVID‐19abscesshead and neckpandemicpediatric

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