Clinical, laboratory, and chest CT features of severe versus non-severe pediatric patients with COVID-19 infection among different age groups

• Published in: BMC infectious diseases 2021-06, Vol.21 (1), p.1-560, Article 560
• Main Authors: Hoseinyazdi, Meisam, Esmaeilian, Saeid, Jahankhah, Reza, Teimouri, Arash, Sherbaf, Farzaneh Ghazi, Rafiee, Faranak, Jalli, Reza, Hooshmandi, Sedighe
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abnormalities; Age; Bacterial infections; C-reactive protein; Chest; Children; Communicable diseases in children; Computed tomography; Coronaviruses; Cough; COVID-19; CT imaging; Demographic aspects; Diagnosis; Fever; Infectious diseases; Laboratory findings; Lymphocytosis; Medical imaging; Patients; Pediatric research; Pediatrics; SARS-CoV-2; Saturation
• ISSN: 1471-2334; 1471-2334
• DOI: 10.1186/s12879-021-06283-5

This study was performed with the intention of comparing the clinical, laboratory, and chest computed tomography (CT) findings between severe and non-severe patients as well as between different age groups composed of pediatric patients with confirmed COVID-19. This study was carried out on a total of 53 confirmed COVID-19 pediatric patients who were hospitalized in Namazi and Ali Asghar Hospitals, Shiraz, Iran. The patients were divided into two severe (n = 27) and non-severe (n = 28) groups as well as into other three groups in terms of their age: aged less than two years, aged 3-12 years and 13-17 years. It should be noted that CT scans, laboratory, and clinical features were taken from all patients at the admission time. Abnormal chest CT in COVID-19 pneumonia was found to show one of the following findings: ground-glass opacities (GGO), bilateral involvement, peripheral and diffuse distribution. Fever (79.2%) and dry cough (75.5%) were the most common clinical symptoms. Severe COVID-19 patients showed lymphocytosis, while the non-severe ones did not (P = 0.03). C-reactive protein (CRP) was shown to be significantly lower in patients aged less than two years than those aged 3-12 and 13-17 years (P = 0.01). It was shown also that O.sub.2 saturation experienced a significant increase as did patients' age (P = 0.01). Severe patients had significantly higher CT abnormalities than non-severe patients (48.0% compared to 17.9%, respectively) (P = 0.02). Lymphocytosis and abnormal CT findings are among the factors most associated with COVID-19 severity. It was, moreover, showed that the severity of COVID-19, O.sub.2 saturation, and respiratory distress were improved as the age of confirmed COVID-19 pediatric patients increased.