Few children with SARS-CoV-2 develop post-COVID-19 condition

Few children with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection develop post-COVID-19 condition (PCC), according to a study published online Dec. 28 in JAMA Network Open.

Frederick Dun-Dery, Ph.D., M.Phil., from the University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada, and colleagues quantified the prevalence of PCC among children tested for SARS-CoV-2 infection in pediatric emergency departments in a multicenter prospective cohort study. Data were included for 5,147 children at six months (1,152 with SARS-CoV-2 positive tests and 3,995 with negative tests) and 5,563 children at 12 months (1,192 and 4,371 with positive and negative tests, respectively).

The researchers found that at six-month follow-up, symptoms and quality-of-life changes consistent with the PCC definition were present in 0.52 and 0.10 percent of children with positive and negative SARS-CoV-2 tests, respectively. At 12 months, 0.67 and 0.16 percent of children with positive and negative SARS-CoV-2 tests, respectively, met the definition for PCC. There was no significant difference in the PedsQL Generic Core Scale scores observed at 12 months among those with positive and negative SARS-CoV-2 tests. Of the eight children with SARS-CoV-2 positive tests and PCC at 12-month follow-up, 88, 38, and 13 percent reported respiratory, systemic, and neurologic symptoms, respectively.

"Although few children had PCC at 12 months, the prevalence was greater among SARS-CoV-2 infected children compared with controls," the authors write. "The likelihood of having symptoms that reduce daily functioning was 0.5 percent greater among those who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 infection compared with those who tested negative."

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