Clinical, laboratory, and imaging features of pediatric COVID-19: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
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ABSTRACT: Abstract
Pediatric cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have been reported. This meta-analysis was aimed at describing the clinical, laboratory, and imaging characteristics of children with COVID-19 based on published data of pediatric COVID-19 cases.Search of PubMed, Embase, Web of Sciences, Science Direct, and Google Scholar for articles published until December 14, 2020, that described the clinical, laboratory, and imaging features of children with COVID-19. Data were extracted independently by 2 authors. Random-effects meta-analysis models were used to report pooled results.Clinical data from 2874 children with COVID-19 from 37 articles were finally included for quantitative analyses. Fever (48.5%, 95% CI: 41.4%-55.6%) and cough (40.6%, 95% CI: 33.9%-47.5%) were the most common symptoms; asymptomatic infection and severe cases, respectively, accounted for 27.7% (95% CI: 19.7%-36.4%) patients and 1.1% of the 1933 patients included. Laboratory tests showed 5.5% (95% CI: 2.8%-8.9%) of the patients had lymphopenia. The pooled prevalence of leukopenia was 7.3% (95% CI: 3.4%-12.2%), and the C-reactive protein level was high in 14.0% (95% CI: 6.8%-22.8%). Chest computed tomography showed unilateral and bilateral lesions, and ground-glass opacity in 29.4% (95% CI: 24.8%-34.3%) and 24.7% (95% CI: 18.2%-31.6%), and 32.9% (95% CI: 25.3%-40.9%), respectively, and normal in approximately 36.0% (95% CI: 27.7%-44.7%).We found that children with COVID-19 had relatively mild disease, with quite a lot of asymptomatic infections and low rate of severe illness. Data from more regions are needed to determine the prevention and treatment strategies for children with COVID-19.
SUBMITTER: Qi K
PROVIDER: S-EPMC8052054 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:IntroductionAn epidemic of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) began in December 2019 in China leading to a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). Clinical, laboratory, and imaging features have been partially characterized in some observational studies. No systematic reviews on COVID-19 have been published to date.MethodsWe performed a systematic literature review with meta-analysis, using three databases to assess clinical, laboratory, imaging features, and outcomes of COVID-19 confirmed cases. Observational studies and also case reports, were included, and analyzed separately. We performed a random-effects model meta-analysis to calculate pooled prevalences and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI).Results660 articles were retrieved for the time frame (1/1/2020-2/23/2020). After screening, 27 articles were selected for full-text assessment, 19 being finally included for qualitative and quantitative analyses. Additionally, 39 case report articles were included and analyzed separately. For 656 patients, fever (88.7%, 95%CI 84.5-92.9%), cough (57.6%, 95%CI 40.8-74.4%) and dyspnea (45.6%, 95%CI 10.9-80.4%) were the most prevalent manifestations. Among the patients, 20.3% (95%CI 10.0-30.6%) required intensive care unit (ICU), 32.8% presented with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) (95%CI 13.7-51.8), 6.2% (95%CI 3.1-9.3) with shock. Some 13.9% (95%CI 6.2-21.5%) of hospitalized patients had fatal outcomes (case fatality rate, CFR).ConclusionCOVID-19 brings a huge burden to healthcare facilities, especially in patients with comorbidities. ICU was required for approximately 20% of polymorbid, COVID-19 infected patients and hospitalization was associated with a CFR of >13%. As this virus spreads globally, countries need to urgently prepare human resources, infrastructure and facilities to treat severe COVID-19.
| S-EPMC7102608 | biostudies-literature
Project description:INTRODUCTION:Since December 2019, a novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) has triggered a world-wide pandemic with an enormous medical and societal-economic toll. Thus, our aim was to gather all available information regarding comorbidities, clinical signs and symptoms, outcomes, laboratory findings, imaging features, and treatments in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). METHODS:EMBASE, PubMed/Medline, Scopus, and Web of Science were searched for studies published in any language between December 1st, 2019 and March 28th, 2020. Original studies were included if the exposure of interest was an infection with SARS-CoV-2 or confirmed COVID-19. The primary outcome was the risk ratio of comorbidities, clinical signs and symptoms, laboratory findings, imaging features, treatments, outcomes, and complications associated with COVID-19 morbidity and mortality. We performed random-effects pairwise meta-analyses for proportions and relative risks, I2, T2, and Cochrane Q, sensitivity analyses, and assessed publication bias. RESULTS:148 studies met the inclusion criteria for the systematic review and meta-analysis with 12'149 patients (5'739 female) and a median age of 47.0 [35.0-64.6] years. 617 patients died from COVID-19 and its complication. 297 patients were reported as asymptomatic. Older age (SMD: 1.25 [0.78-1.72]; p < 0.001), being male (RR = 1.32 [1.13-1.54], p = 0.005) and pre-existing comorbidity (RR = 1.69 [1.48-1.94]; p < 0.001) were identified as risk factors of in-hospital mortality. The heterogeneity between studies varied substantially (I2; range: 1.5-98.2%). Publication bias was only found in eight studies (Egger's test: p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS:Our meta-analyses revealed important risk factors that are associated with severity and mortality of COVID-19.
| S-EPMC7402237 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Background Pediatric COVID-19 is relatively mild and may vary from that in adults. This study was to investigate the epidemic, clinical, and imaging features of pediatric COVID-19 pneumonia for early diagnosis and treatment. Methods Forty-one children infected with COVID-19 were analyzed in the epidemic, clinical and imaging data. Results Among 30 children with mild COVID-19, seven had no symptoms, fifteen had low or mediate fever, and eight presented with cough, nasal congestion, diarrhea, headache, or fatigue. Among eleven children with moderate COVID-19, nine presented with low or mediate fever, accompanied with cough and runny nose, and two had no symptoms. Significantly (P?<?0.05) more children had a greater rate of cough in moderate than in mild COVID-19. Thirty children with mild COVID-19 were negative in pulmonary CT imaging, whereas eleven children with moderate COVID-19 had pulmonary lesions, including ground glass opacity in ten (90.9%), patches of high density in six (54.5%), consolidation in three (27.3%), and enlarged bronchovascular bundles in seven (63.6%). The lesions were distributed along the bronchus in five patients (45.5%). The lymph nodes were enlarged in the pulmonary hilum in two patients (18.2%). The lesions were presented in the right upper lobe in two patients (18.1%), right middle lobe in one (9.1%), right lower lobe in six (54.5%), left upper lobe in five (45.5%), and left lower lobe in eight (72.7%). Conclusions Children with COVID-19 have mild or moderate clinical and imaging presentations. A better understanding of the clinical and CT imaging helps ascertaining those with negative nucleic acid and reducing misdiagnosis rate for those with atypical and concealed symptoms.
| S-EPMC7556551 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundWith the COVID-19 epidemic breakout in China, up to 25% of diagnosed cases are considered to be severe. To effectively predict the progression of COVID-19 via patients' clinical features at an early stage, the prevalence of these clinical factors and their relationships with severe illness were assessed.MethodsIn this study, electronic databases (PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Chinese database) were searched to obtain relevant studies, including information on severe patients. Publication bias analysis, sensitivity analysis, prevalence, sensitivity, specificity, likelihood ratio, diagnosis odds ratio calculation, and visualization graphics were achieved through software Review Manager 5.3, Stata 15, Meta-DiSc 1.4, and R.ResultsData of 3.547 patients from 24 studies were included in this study. The results revealed that patients with chronic respiratory system diseases (pooled positive likelihood 6.07, 95% CI: 3.12-11.82), chronic renal disease (4.79, 2.04-11.25), cardiovascular disease (3.45, 2.19-5.44), and symptoms of the onset of chest tightness (3.8, 1.44-10.05), shortness of breath (3.18, 2.24-4.51), and diarrhea (2.04, 1.38-3.04) exhibited increased probability of progressing to severe illness. C-reactive protein, ratio of neutrophils to lymphocytes, and erythrocyte sedimentation rate increased a lot in severe patients compared to nonsevere. Yet, it was found that clinical features including fever, cough, and headache, as well as some comorbidities, have little warning value.ConclusionsThe clinical features and laboratory examination could be used to estimate the process of infection in COVID-19 patients. The findings contribute to the more efficient prediction of serious illness for patients with COVID-19 to reduce mortality.
| S-EPMC8593588 | biostudies-literature
Project description:(1) Background: The global threat of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) continues. The diversity of clinical characteristics and progress are reported in many countries as the duration of the pandemic is prolonged. We aimed to perform a novel systematic review and meta-analysis focusing on findings about correlations between clinical characteristics and laboratory features of patients with COVID-19. (2) Methods: We analyzed cases of COVID-19 in different countries by searching PubMed, Embase, Web of Science databases and Google Scholar, from the early stage of the outbreak to late March. Clinical characteristics, laboratory findings, and treatment strategies were retrospectively reviewed for the analysis. (3) Results: Thirty-seven (n = 5196 participants) COVID-19-related studies were eligible for this systematic review and meta-analysis. Fever, cough and fatigue/myalgia were the most common symptoms of COVID-19, followed by some gastrointestinal symptoms which are also reported frequently. Laboratory markers of inflammation and infection including C-reactive protein (CRP) (65% (95% confidence interval (CI) 56-81%)) were elevated, while lymphocyte counts were decreased (63% (95% CI 47-78%)). Meta-analysis of treatment approaches indicated that three modalities of treatment were predominantly used in the majority of patients with a similar prevalence, including antiviral agents (79%), antibiotics (78%), and oxygen therapy (77%). Age was negatively correlated with number of lymphocytes, but positively correlated with dyspnea, number of white blood cells, neutrophils, and D-dimer. Chills had been proved to be positively correlated with chest tightness, lung abnormalities on computed tomography (CT) scans, neutrophil/lymphocyte/platelets count, D-dimer and CRP, cough was positively correlated with sputum production, and pulmonary abnormalities were positively correlated with CRP. White blood cell (WBC) count was also positively correlated with platelet counts, dyspnea, and neutrophil counts with the respective correlations of 0.668, 0.728, and 0.696. (4) Conclusions: This paper is the first systematic review and meta-analysis to reveal the relationship between various variables of clinical characteristics, symptoms and laboratory results with the largest number of papers and patients until now. In elderly patients, laboratory and clinical characteristics indicate a more severe disease course. Moreover, treatments such as antiviral agents, antibiotics, and oxygen therapy which are used in over three quarters of patients are also analyzed. The results will provide "evidence-based hope" on how to manage this unanticipated and overwhelming pandemic.
| S-EPMC7400047 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundEarly detection of disease progression associated with severe COVID-19, and access to proper medical care lowers fatality rates of severe cases. Currently, no studies had systematically examined the variables in detecting severe COVID-19.MethodSystematic searching of electronic databases identified observational studies which recruited participants with confirmed COVID-19 infection who were divided into different groups according to disease severity were identified.ResultsTo analysis 41 studies with 5064 patients were included.Patients who are elderly (SMD, 1.90; 95% CI, 1.01 to 2.8), male (OR, 1.71; 95% CI, 1.39 to 2.11) and have comorbidities or flu-like symptoms were significantly associated with the development to severe cases. Severe cases were associated with significant increased WBC (OR, 5.83; 95% CI, 2.76 to 12.32), CRP (OR, 3.62; 95% CI, 1.62 to 8.03), D-dimer (SMD, 1.69; 95% CI, 1.09 to 2.28), AST (OR, 4.64; 95% CI, 3.18 to 6.77) and LDH (OR, 7.94; 95% CI, 2.09 to 30.21). CT manifestation of bilateral lung involvement (OR, 4.55; 95% CI, 2.17 to 9.51) was associated with the severe cases. Conclusions and Relevance: Our findings offer guidance for a wide spectrum of clinicians to early identify severe COVID-19 patients, transport to specialised centres, and initiate appropriate treatment. Key Messages This systematic review and meta-analysis examined 41 studies including 5,064 patients with confirmed COVID-19. Severe cases were associated with age, male gender, and with fever, cough and respiratory diseases, increased WBC, CRP, D-dimer, AST and LDH levels. Furthermore, CT manifestation of bilateral lung involvement was associated with the severe cases. These findings provide guidance to health professionals with early identification of severe COVID-19 patients, transportation to specialised care and initiate appropriate supportive treatment.
| S-EPMC7877997 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) pandemic first broke out in December 2019 in Wuhan, China, and has now spread worldwide. Laboratory findings have been only partially described in some observational studies. To date, more comprehensive systematic reviews of laboratory findings on COVID-19 are missing. We performed a systematic review with a meta-analysis to assess laboratory findings in patients with COVID-19. Observational studies from three databases were selected. We calculated pooled proportions and 95% confidence interval (95% CI) using the random-effects model meta-analysis. A total of 1106 articles were identified from PubMed, Web of Science, CNKI (China), and other sources. After screening, 28 and 7 studies were selected for a systematic review and a meta-analysis, respectively. Of the 4,663 patients included, the most prevalent laboratory finding was increased C-reactive protein (CRP; 73.6%, 95% CI 65.0-81.3%), followed by decreased albumin (62.9%, 95% CI 28.3-91.2%), increased erythrocyte sedimentation rate (61.2%, 95% CI 41.3-81.0%), decreased eosinophils (58.4%, 95% CI 46.5-69.8%), increased interleukin-6 (53.1%, 95% CI 36.0-70.0%), lymphopenia (47.9%, 95% CI 41.6-54.9%), and increased lactate dehydrogenase (LDH; 46.2%, 95% CI 37.9-54.7%). A meta-analysis of seven studies with 1905 patients showed that increased CRP (OR 3.0, 95% CI: 2.1-4.4), lymphopenia (OR 4.5, 95% CI: 3.3-6.0), and increased LDH (OR 6.7, 95% CI: 2.4-18.9) were significantly associated with severity. These results demonstrated that more attention is warranted when interpreting laboratory findings in patients with COVID-19. Patients with elevated CRP levels, lymphopenia, or elevated LDH require proper management and, if necessary, transfer to the intensive care unit.
| S-EPMC7256350 | biostudies-literature
Project description:IntroductionThe novel coronavirus pandemic is an ongoing challenge faced by the public and health care systems around the globe. Majority of information and evidence gathered so far regarding COVID-19 has been derived from data and studies in adult populations. Crucial information regarding the characterization, clinical symptomatology, sequelae, and overall outcomes in the pediatric population is lacking. As such, we aimed to conduct a comprehensive meta-analysis and systematic review to collect and analyze current evidence about COVID-19 in the pediatric population.MethodA systematic search and review of scientific literatures was conducted following the PRISMA guidelines using PubMed, Embase, Scopus, Medline, and Google Scholar databases. All relevant studies until June 16, 2020 were included. Studies were reviewed for methodological quality, and random-effects model was used to conduct the primary meta-analysis. I2 value and Egger's test was used to estimate heterogeneity and publication bias respectively.ResultsWe reviewed 20 eligible studies that included 1810 pediatric patient population (<21 yo) with PCR tested COVID-19 positivity. In pooled data, majority (25 % [CI 18-32], I2 59 %) of overall COVID-19 positive patients fell in the 6-10 yr age group. 13 % ([CI 11-14], I2 78 %) of the patients were asymptomatic, with headache (67 % [CI 60-74], I2 46 %), fever (55 % [CI 52-58], I2 61 %), and cough (45 % [CI 42-49], I2 79 %) accounting for the most prevalent physical signs seen in symptomatic patients. Leukopenia (12 % [CI 9-15], I250 %) and lymphopenia (15 % [CI 13-19], I2 85 %) was common. Elevated Ferritin (26 % [CI 16-40], I2 73 %), Procal (25 % [CI 21-29 %], I2 83 %), and CRP (19 % [CI 16-22 %], I2 74 %) were other laboratory abnormalities commonly observed. Common radiological features were ground-glass opacities (36 % [CI 32-39 %], I2 92 %), normal finding (33 % [CI 30-36 %], I2 81 %), and consolidation. 29 % ([CI 26-33], I2 85 %) of the patient cases was non-severe, whereas only 5 % ([CI 1-8], I2 87 %) was severe. Mortality was observed in 0.3 % ([CI 0.1-0.4], I2 0%) of the overall cases.ConclusionCOVID-19 is prevalent across all pediatric age-groups and presents with varying degree of symptomology. However, children have a milder course of the disease with extremely favorable prognosis. Laboratory and radiological features are inconsistent and require further investigations. Additional studies are needed on this topic to corroborate findings and establish evidence-based and consistent characterization of COVID-19 in the pediatric population.
| S-EPMC7723460 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundMore severe cases of COVID- 19 are more likely to be hospitalized and around one-fifth, needing ICU admission. Understanding the common laboratory features of COVID-19 in more severe cases versus non-severe patients could be quite useful for clinicians and might help to predict the model of disease progression. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to compare the laboratory test findings in severe vs. non-severe confirmed infected cases of COVID-19.MethodsElectronic databases were systematically searched in PubMed, EMBASE, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar from the beginning of 2019 to 3rd of March 2020. Heterogeneity across included studies was determined using Cochrane's Q test and the I2 statistic. We used the fixed or random-effect models to pool the weighted mean differences (WMDs) or standardized mean differences and 95% confidence intervals (CIs).FindingsOut of a total of 3009 citations, 17 articles (22 studies, 21 from China and one study from Singapore) with 3396 ranging from 12 to1099 patients were included. Our meta-analyses showed a significant decrease in lymphocyte, monocyte, and eosinophil, hemoglobin, platelet, albumin, serum sodium, lymphocyte to C-reactive protein ratio (LCR), leukocyte to C-reactive protein ratio (LeCR), leukocyte to IL-6 ratio (LeIR), and an increase in the neutrophil, alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), total bilirubin, blood urea nitrogen (BUN), creatinine (Cr), erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate (ESR), C-reactive protein (CRP), Procalcitonin (PCT), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), fibrinogen, prothrombin time (PT), D-dimer, glucose level, and neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) in the severe group compared with the non-severe group. No significant changes in white blood cells (WBC), Creatine Kinase (CK), troponin I, myoglobin, IL-6 and K between the two groups were observed.InterpretationThis meta-analysis provides evidence for the differentiation of severe cases of COVID-19 based on laboratory test results at the time of ICU admission. Future well-methodologically designed studies from other populations are strongly recommended.
| S-EPMC7396942 | biostudies-literature
Project description:IntroductionWith the threat of a worldwide pandemic of COVID-19, it is important to identify the prognostic factors for critical conditions among patients with non-critical COVID-19. Prognostic factors and models may assist front-line clinicians in rapid identification of high-risk patients, early management of modifiable factors, appropriate triaging and optimising the use of limited healthcare resources. We aim to systematically assess the clinical, laboratory and imaging predictors as well as prediction models for severe or critical illness and mortality in patients with COVID-19.Methods and analysisAll peer-reviewed and preprint primary articles with a longitudinal design that focused on prognostic factors or models for critical illness and mortality related to COVID-19 will be eligible for inclusion. A systematic search of 11 databases including PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, CNKI, VIP, Wanfang Data, SinoMed, bioRxiv, Arxiv and MedRxiv will be conducted. Study selection will follow the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. Data extraction will be performed using the modified version of the Critical Appraisal and Data Extraction for Systematic Reviews of Prediction Modelling Studies checklist and quality will be evaluated using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale and the Quality In Prognosis Studies tool. The association between prognostic factors and outcomes of interest will be synthesised and a meta-analysis will be conducted with three or more studies reporting a particular factor in a consistent manner.Ethics and disseminationEthical approval was not required for this systematic review. We will disseminate our findings through publication in a peer-reviewed journal.Prospero registration numberCRD 42020178798.
| S-EPMC7768616 | biostudies-literature