Document Type : original article

Authors

1 Department of Radiology, Faculty of Medicine, Kashan University of Medical Sciences, Kashan, Iran

2 Department of Pediatrics,Faculty of medicine,Kashan University of Medical Sciences, Kashan, Iran

3 Student Research Committee, Faculty of Medicine, Kashan University of Medical Sciences, Kashan, Iran

4 Associate professor of pediatrics diseases, Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, Infectious Diseases Research Center, Shahid Beheshti Hospital, Kashan University of Medical Sciences

5 Department of Radiology, Kashan University of Medical Sciences, Kashan, Iran

10.22038/ijp.2023.74419.5366

Abstract

Background: Most research on children and adolescents with COVID-19, had limited sample sizes and little clinical, laboratory, and radiological findings. The purpose of this research was to examine the features of children and adolescents with COVID-19 infection.

Materials and Methods: This analytical retrospective study was conducted on pediatrics (1 to 12 years old) and adolescents (13 to 19 years old) cases with COVID‐19 at Shahid Beheshti Hospital, Kashan, Iran. The data were then collected, entered into SPSS, and analyzed.

Results: In the adolescent group, the frequency of dyspnea (47.1 % vs. 11.9%), cough (67.1 % vs. 39.2%), lethargy (42.9 % vs. 25.9%), headache (35.7 % vs. 10.5%), myalgia (38.6 % vs. 14%), and chest pain (12.9 % vs. 0.7%) were significantly higher than in the pediatric (p<0.05). Furthermore, in terms of laboratory findings, the normal range of neutrophils (13.8% vs. 1.4%), Cr (95% vs. 75.7%) and CRP (77.9% vs. 58%) were higher in the pediatric. Moreover, we found that the CT severity score among adolescent patients was significantly higher than that of the pediatrics (4.84 ± 5.21 vs. 1.76 ± 3.25, p=0.006). Also, the frequency of consolidation (61.3 % vs. 19%), and ground-glass opacity (58.1 % vs. 28.6%) among adolescents were significantly higher compared to the pediatric cases (p<0.05) while only the frequency of mosaic pattern of pulmonary parenchymal attenuation among children was significantly higher (p=0.035).

Conclusion: This research found milder clinical, biochemical, and radiological symptoms in children with COVID-19 than in adolescents. However, radiological examinations showed greater rates of pulmonary parenchymal mosaic attenuation, which might help diagnose COVID-19 early.

Keywords: coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), pediatrics, adolescents, chest CT scan

Keywords