Clinical and epidemiological features of SARS-CoV-2 infection among hospitalized children in Ukraine

Introduction: clinical features for SARS-CoV-2 of pediatric patients is limited and requires further research. Objectives: The aim of our study was to determine and describe the clinical, demographic, epidemiological features of COVID-19 for the hospitalized children in Ukraine. Materials and methods: A retrospective study of 130 pediatric patients, age from 1 month to 18 years hospitalized to the Kyiv Children9s Clinical Hospital of Infectious Diseases diagnosed with laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 was carried out. Results: The majority of the patients presented a moderate form of disease 81,8%, while 18,2% suffered from a severe form. In the age groups, the children from 6 to 12 years 31,8% prevailed. The highest rate of children with the severe form was detected among the13-18 years old children, 67%, i.e.16 from 24 children with the severe form, 5 of them (21%) in the ICU, 2 of them (1,5%) receiving mechanical ventilation. A total of 57 % of patients had infected at home. The initial symptoms were fever (78,5 %), cough (53,8 %), rhinitis (50%). The rate of pre-existing comorbidity disease: 45 patients (34%) presented chronic tonsillitis (11,36 %), anemia (4,5%). Ground-glass opacification was noted in 61,3% of the cases, unilateral pneumonia in 8,3%, bilateral pneumonia in 6,8%. The leading abnormal laboratory marker was CRP, which was registered among 23 children (17,4%), in 12 of 24 children with the severe form, leukocytosis was detected in (28,8%). Conclusions: Among hospitalized children prevailed a moderate form of COVID-19. However, a small part of children had a severe form of disease. This research will give additional information about the course of SARS-CoV-2 infection.