scholarly journals COVID-19 infection in children and adolescents

2020 ◽  
Vol 81 (8) ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Meena Naja ◽  
Lucy Wedderburn ◽  
Coziana Ciurtin

The COVID-19 pandemic has predominantly affected the adult population. The disease is less well-defined in children (≤18 years). This review summarises the current understanding of the epidemiology, clinical manifestations, and management of COVID-19 in children and adolescents. The prevalence of COVID-19 is significantly lower in children than adults, but paediatric disease is likely underdiagnosed as a result of the high numbers of asymptomatic or mild cases. Children are vulnerable to family cluster outbreaks, but are unlikely to be index cases within a household. Vertical transmission or breast milk transmission are yet to be proven. Between 10 and 90% of paediatric COVID-19 cases are asymptomatic. Symptomatic cases typically present with mild symptoms, including cough, fever and sore throat. Intensive care admission and mortality are rare. Paediatric multisystem inflammatory syndrome temporally associated with COVID-19 is a rare, but severe, newly emerging phenotype. At present, there is no specific treatment for COVID-19 in adults or children; management is usually supportive. For severe or critical disease, including paediatric multisystem inflammatory syndrome temporally associated with COVID-19, the decision to start antiviral or immunomodulatory therapy should be on a case-by-case basis; in the UK, this should be done within a clinical trial. Further research is needed into both the disease course and treatment of paediatric COVID-19.

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (supplement) ◽  
pp. 32-42
Author(s):  
Hayder Al-Momen ◽  
Wisam Younis Al-Tamimi ◽  
Hussein Khudhair Hussein ◽  
Tareef Fadhil Raham

Sufficient high-quality data are unavailable to describe the management approach and guideline of COVID-19 disease in pediatric and adolescent population which may be due to mild presentation in most of cases and less severe complications than older ages. World Health Organization was concerned with the establishment of an approved guideline to manage the increasing number of COVID-19 patients worldwide aiming to prevent or lessen COVID-19 global burden. The clinical features have a wide spectrum starting from uncomplicated mild illness, mild-moderate pneumonia, severe pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome, sepsis, septic shock, and multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children. Many important definitions were developed to identify the COVID-19 case status including confirmed, suspected, and probable case. Many laboratory tests may be beneficially done but reverse transcriptase – polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for SARS-CoV-2 RNA is diagnostic. Patient isolation and adequate intake of fluid and calories, antipyretics (preferably paracetamol), antibiotics (in secondary bacterial infections), and bed rest are the mainstay of approved supportive treatment. While oxygen supplementation may be added in moderate to severe cases; anticoagulation prophylaxis (enoxaparin) is strongly advised in children with certain situations where hypercoagulability state is identified, and therapy should be evaluated based on risk factors. New approaches, drugs, and therapies are currently under research to manage COVID-19 pediatric and adolescent patients including antivirals (lopinavir/ritonavir, and favipiravir), remdesivir, tocilizumab, dexamethasone, convalescent plasma, and specific treatment of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (immunoglobulin, steroids, tocilizumab, anakinra, and aspirin). The practical approach was summarized in a flow chart scheme to assist health care professionals to manage COVID-19 in children and adolescents within a rapid look though details are given in the text.


2021 ◽  
Vol 36 (Supplement_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Gilchrist ◽  
Francesco Casanova ◽  
Jessica Tyrrell ◽  
Nicole Fife ◽  
Katie Young ◽  
...  

Abstract Background and Aims Fabry disease (FD) is an X-linked lysosomal storage disorder resulting from deficiency of the alpha-galactosidase A enzyme. This leads to the accumulation of globotriaosylceramide in multiple organ sites with prominent renal involvement, cardio and cerebrovascular disease, as well as neurological, dermatological, and gastrointestinal pathology in affected individuals. Clinical manifestations are highly heterogeneous with considerable variation depending on the specific variant and even within families with the same variant. Prevalence estimates from studies of case control cohorts range from 1 in 40,000 to 1 in 140,000. We sought to determine the prevalence of Fabry disease causing mutations in an unbiased adult population sample using the UK Biobank. Method UK Biobank comprises approximately 500,000 participants with extensive phenotyping and genetic data linked to clinical care records. Exome sequencing data from 200643 individuals from the UK Biobank were examined for variants in the GLA gene. Likely mutations were searched for in ClinVar and HGMD with subsequent review of supporting literature. We used ACMG guidelines to classify the pathogenicity of variants. Results Eighty one coding variants were identified in GLA. Nine of these variants were rare (<1 in 10,000 individuals) and either protein truncating variants or previously reported to cause Fabry’s disease. Thirty seven individuals, (14 males, 22 females, 1 missing data) carried one of these GLA variants. The most common variant was the cardiac predominant phenotype causing N215S variant (18/37). 6/37 had the R363C variant, 4/37 had R356Q. The R112H, R301Q, I198T variants were each identified in 2 individuals. There were single individuals with I232T, K240fs, and E66G variants. Two male individuals (with I232T, K240fs variants) had HES codes compatible with a known diagnosis of Fabry disease. The remaining 12/14 males did not have evidence of an existing diagnosis of Fabry disease. No female participants had HES codes indicating an existing diagnosis of Fabry disease. The overall prevalence of Fabry disease causing variants in the UK Biobank is 1 in 5,422. The N215 variant alone has a prevalence of 1 in 11,147. Conclusion Reported Fabry disease causing GLA variants are far more prevalent in an unselected population sample than would be expected from the reported prevalence of Fabry disease. This may be because some of the reported variants are not pathogenic, or are predominantly later-onset causing variants with reduced penetrance. The true prevalence of Fabry disease may be substantially higher than current estimates.


2008 ◽  
Vol 59 (3) ◽  
pp. 155
Author(s):  
A Leum Lee ◽  
Young Tong Kim ◽  
Jong Kyu Han ◽  
Sung Shick Jou ◽  
Du Shin Jung

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (7_suppl3) ◽  
pp. 2325967121S0004
Author(s):  
John A. Schlechter ◽  
Tanner Harrah ◽  
Bryn Gornick ◽  
Benjamin Sherman

Introduction: With participation in youth sports anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries are a common occurrence. Nearly 70% of ACL tears in children and adolescents have an associated meniscus tear. Percutaneous medial collateral ligament (MCL) relaxation has been described as utilitarian in accessing the medial meniscus for diagnostic assessment and treatment in the adult population to increase medial compartment working space in arthroscopic surgery. The technique has not been evaluated in the pediatric population. The purpose of this study was to compare the outcomes of children and adolescents that underwent anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR) with and without percutaneous relaxation of the medial collateral ligament (MCL) for meniscal tear management. Methods: A retrospective review was performed of patients aged 8 to 19 years old that had undergone knee arthroscopy for an (ACLR) with meniscus pathology. Those that underwent MCL relaxation were grouped together and compared to a matched cohort that did not have MCL relaxation performed. Preoperative, operative and postoperative data was analyzed. The primary measurement was obtained using a validated patient reported outcome score (Pedi-IKDC), secondary outcome measures were defined as superficial or deep infection, saphenous nerve dysesthesias, ACL graft failure and return to the operating room. Statistical analysis of the two cohorts was performed. Results: Fifty-four patients were included in the study (27 in each group) with average age 15 years (range 10-19). Average follow-up for the MCL relaxation group was 22.4 months versus 58 months for the non-MCL relaxation group. The average Pedi-IKDC score was 93.3 for the MCL relaxation group and 91.4 for the non-MCL relaxation group (p=0.34). There was no difference in patient demographics, return to the operating room (p=0.49), saphenous nerve dysesthesia (p=0.49), superficial or deep infection (p=0.32). Conclusion: ACL reconstruction in children and adolescents with MCL relaxation for the management of medial meniscal tears appears to be a safe option. Equivocal patient reported outcome scores as compared to the control group were found with no increase in post-operative complications. In children with ACL tears, appropriate diagnosis and management of medial meniscal pathology is important to maintain secondary restraint to anterior tibial translation and prevent premature graft failure. Pediatric knees can have tight medial compartments, making access difficult, potentially leading to poor visualization and iatrogenic chondral damage. Percutaneous medial collateral ligament (MCL) relaxation has been described in the adult population to increase medial compartment working space without long term sequela. We report similar findings in an all pediatric cohort.


Author(s):  
Mar Muñoz-Chápuli Gutiérrez ◽  
Ana Durán-Vila ◽  
Javier Ruiz-Labarta ◽  
Pilar Payá-Martínez ◽  
Pilar Pintado Recarte ◽  
...  

Spain was one of the epicenters of the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. We describe in this article the design and results of a new telephone-and-telematic multiplatform model of systematic prenatal and postpartum follow-up for COVID-19-affected women implemented in a tertiary reference hospital in Madrid. We included patients with RT-PCR-confirmed COVID-19 during pregnancy or delivery from 10 March 2020 to 15 December 2020. We had a total of 211 obstetric patients: 148 (70.1%) were tested at the onset of suspicious clinical manifestations and 62 (29.4%) were tested in the context of routine screening. Of all the patients, 60 women (28.4%) were asymptomatic and 97 (46%) presented mild symptoms. Fifty-one women (24.2%) were admitted to our hospital for specific treatment because of moderate or severe symptoms. We had no missed cases and a good adherence. The mean number of calls per patient was 2.3. We performed 55 in-person visits. We analyzed the complexity of our program over time, showing a two-wave-like pattern. One patient was identified as needing hospitalization and we did not record major morbidity. Telemedicine programs are a strong and reproducible tool to reach to pregnant population affected by COVID-19, to assess its symptoms and severity, and to record for pregnancy-related symptoms both in an outpatient regime and after discharge from hospital.


BMJ ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. n1866
Author(s):  
Sonia Saxena ◽  
Helen Skirrow ◽  
Kate Wighton

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lukasz Cybulski ◽  
Darren M. Ashcroft ◽  
Matthew J. Carr ◽  
Shruti Garg ◽  
Carolyn A. Chew-Graham ◽  
...  

Abstract Background There has been growing concern in the UK over recent years that a perceived mental health crisis is affecting children and adolescents, although published epidemiological evidence is limited. Methods Two population-based UK primary care cohorts were delineated in the Aurum and GOLD datasets of the Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD). We included data from 9,133,246 individuals aged 1–20 who contributed 117,682,651 person-years of observation time. Sex- and age-stratified annual incidence rates were estimated for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) (age groups: 1–5, 6–9, 10–12, 13–16, 17–19), depression, anxiety disorders (6–9, 10–12, 13–16, 17–19), eating disorders and self-harm (10–12, 13–16, 17–19) during 2003–2018. We fitted negative binomial regressions to estimate incidence rate ratios (IRRs) to examine change in incidence between the first (2003) and final year (2018) year of observation and to examine sex-specific incidence. Results The results indicated that the overall incidence has increased substantially in both boys and girls in between 2003 and 2018 for anxiety disorders (IRR 3.51 95% CI 3.18–3.89), depression (2.37; 2.03–2.77), ASD (2.36; 1.72–3.26), ADHD (2.3; 1.73–3.25), and self-harm (2.25; 1.82–2.79). The incidence for eating disorders also increased (IRR 1.3 95% CI 1.06–1.61), but less sharply. The incidence of anxiety disorders, depression, self-harm and eating disorders was in absolute terms higher in girls, whereas the opposite was true for the incidence of ADHD and ASD, which were higher among boys. The largest relative increases in incidence were observed for neurodevelopmental disorders, particularly among girls diagnosed with ADHD or ASD. However, in absolute terms, the incidence was much higher for depression and anxiety disorders. Conclusion The number of young people seeking help for psychological distress appears to have increased in recent years. Changes to diagnostic criteria, reduced stigma, and increased awareness may partly explain our results, but we cannot rule out true increases in incidence occurring in the population. Whatever the explanation, the marked rise in demand for healthcare services means that it may be more challenging for affected young people to promptly access the care and support that they need.


Author(s):  
Stefan Koehn ◽  
Farzad Amirabdollahian

The Exercise Benefits/Barriers Scale (EBBS) research instrument has been extensively used to investigate the perceived benefits and barriers of exercise in a range of settings. In order to examine theoretical contentions and translate the findings, it is imperative to implement measurement tools that operationalize the constructs in an accurate and reliable way. The original validation of the EBBS proposed a nine-factor structure for the research tool, examined the EBBS factor structure, and suggested that various factors are important for the testing of the perception of exercise benefits and barriers, whereas a few items and factors may not be vital. The current study conducted a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) using hierarchical testing in 565 participants from the northwest region of the United Kingdom, the results of which provided evidence for a four-factor structure of the benefits measure, with the Comparative Fit Index (CFI) = 0.943, Tucker–Lewis Index (TLI) = 0.933, and root means square error of approximation (RMSEA) = 0.051, namely life enhancement, physical performance, psychological outlook, and social interaction, as well as a two-factor structure of the barrier measures, with the CFI = 0.953, TLI = 0.931, and RMSEA = 0.063, including exercise milieu and time expenditure. Our findings showed that for a six-factor correlated model, the CFI = 0.930, TLI = 0.919, and RMSEA = 0.046. The multi-group CFA provided support for gender invariance. The results indicated that after three decades of the original validation of the EBBS, many of the core factors and items are still relevant for the assessment of higher-order factors; however, the 26-item concise tool proposed in the current study displays a better parsimony in comparison with the original 43-item questionnaire. Overall, the current study provides support for a reliable, cross-culturally valid EBBS within the UK adult population, however, it proposes a shorter and more concise version compared with the original tool, and gives direction for future research to focus on the content validity for assessing the perception of the barriers to physical activity.


2021 ◽  
Vol 80 (Suppl 1) ◽  
pp. 882.1-882
Author(s):  
C. Sengler ◽  
S. Eulert ◽  
M. Niewerth ◽  
T. Kallinich ◽  
H. Wittkowski ◽  
...  

Background:Although children and adolescents are less likely to develop COVID-19 and generally show milder disease courses, it is unclear what impact the SARS-CoV2 infection has on children and adolescents with rheumatic and musculoskeletal disease (RMD). Due to their underlying disease as well as therapeutic immunosuppression these patients may be at higher risk of being more severely affected by SARS-CoV2. Furthermore, SARS-CoV2 infection might trigger a flare of the underlying disease.Objectives:To evaluate clinical characteristics and disease course of COVID-19 in children and adolescents with RMD and to analyze possible effects of SARS-CoV2 infection on the underlying disease under different therapeutic regimens.Methods:Data from juvenile patients with RMD recorded via the SARS-CoV2 questionnaire within the National Pediatric Rheumatology Database and the registry for hospitalized children and adolescents with COVID-19 of the German Society for Pediatric Infectious Diseases were analyzed. In addition to age, sex and diagnosis, information was collected about the date and method of a positive SARS-CoV2 testing, reason for testing, on clinical manifestations, disease course, treatment and outcome of COVID-19, on drug therapy at the time of virus detection, on disease activity (NRS 0 – 10, 0 = best) of the underlying disease at the last visit before and after the SARS-CoV2 infection.Results:From April 17th 2020 until January 25th 2021, data of 67 patients with RMD and confirmed SARS-CoV2 infection were collected. Mean age was 13.5 ± 3.9 years with equal sex distribution. The majority of patients were diagnosed with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA, 64%), 12 (18%) patients had an autoinflammatory disease (FMF, CAPS, PFAPA, TRAPS) and 5 (7%) a connective tissue disease. Fifty-two patients (78%) were treated with a disease modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD), 39% with a biological DMARD and 9% systemic glucocorticoids at the time of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Nineteen patients (28%) were tested for SARS-CoV-2 because of typical symptoms, the majority (67%) because of contact to an infected person. PCR was used most often (in 60 %).52 patients (78%) developed symptoms of COVID-19, 15 patients remained asymptomatic. The most common symptom of COVID-19 was rhinitis (42%) and fever (38%), followed by fatigue (34%), taste/smell disorder (33%), sore throat (27%) and cough (23%).Disease severity was graded as mild in 44 of 52 (85%) symptomatic patients, only two patients were hospitalized, one of whom required intensive care and died of cardiorespiratory failure 3 days after symptom onset. In 22 of 26 (85%) SARS-CoV2-positive patients, no relevant increase in disease activity (difference in NRS ≤ 1 before/after infection) of the underlying disease was observed 31 days after symptom onset (median, IQR 17-52 days). One patient, who had paused tocilizumab for 2 doses, experienced a flare of his seronegative polyarthritis 2 months after asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection.Conclusion:In our cohort, the clinical picture of COVID-19 in children and adolescents with RMD was similar to that of healthy peers. The majority of patients showed mild disease course with good outcome under various medications, however, one patient with a severe course of COVID-19 died. In addition, SARS-CoV2 infection does not appear to have a relevant impact on the underlying disease activity, whereas discontinuation of therapy might pose a risk of flare.Disclosure of Interests:None declared.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 1073
Author(s):  
Patricia Martínez-Botía ◽  
Ángel Bernardo ◽  
Andrea Acebes-Huerta ◽  
Alberto Caro ◽  
Blanca Leoz ◽  
...  

The most severe clinical manifestations of the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), are due to an unbalanced immune response and a pro-thrombotic hemostatic disturbance, with arterial hypertension or diabetes as acknowledged risk factors. While waiting for a specific treatment, the clinical management of hospitalized patients is still a matter of debate, and the effectiveness of treatments to manage clinical manifestations and comorbidities has been questioned. In this study, we aim to assess the impact of the clinical management of arterial hypertension, inflammation and thrombosis on the survival of COVID-19 patients. The Spanish cohorts included in this observational retrospective study are from HM Hospitales (2035 patients) and from Hospital Universitario Central de Asturias (72 patients). Kaplan Meier survival curves, Cox regression and propensity score matching analyses were employed, considering demographic variables, comorbidities and treatment arms (when opportune) as covariates. The management of arterial hypertension with angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) inhibitors or angiotensin receptor blockers is not detrimental, as was initially reported, and neither was the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). On the contrary, our analysis shows that the use on itself of corticosteroids is not beneficial. Importantly, the management of COVID-19 patients with low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) as an anticoagulant significantly improves the survival of hospitalized patients. These results delineate the current treatment options under debate, supporting the effectiveness of thrombosis prophylaxis on COVID-19 patients as a first-line treatment without the need for compromising the treatment of comorbidities, while suggesting cautiousness when administering corticosteroids.


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