ABSTRACT
Background. SarsCov2 infection began to spread worldwide since December 2019 and, on March 2020, the World Health Organization characterized its related disease, named COVID-19, as a pandemic. In Italy, to contain the spread of infection a severe lockdown from March 10th, 2020 to May 4th, 2020 was instituted. Other less severe restrictions were imposed in the winter 2020- 2021 and in the spring 2021. The containment measures caused a series of consequences for the population and, in particular, for children and adolescents that presented several psychophysical problems. Aim(s): This study aims to investigate the serum levels of vitamin D in children and adolescent before, during and after the lockdown consequent to COVID-19 pandemic. Material(s) and Method(s): This is a retrospective cross-sectional study, including all children and adolescents between 1 to 18 years referring to the Pediatric Endocrinology Service of the University Hospital of Verona, Italy, between January 2019 and December 2021. All patients affected by clinical conditions that involve vitamin D metabolism or assuming vitamin D supplementation were excluded. Result(s): In total, 490 children (36.7% males and 63.3% females) were enrolled in this study. The vitamin D levels decreased over time: 28.2 +/- 10.2 ng/mL in 2019;28.2 +/- 11.4 ng/mL in 2020 and 24.9 +/- 10.1 ng/mL in 2021 (p<0.05). The vitamin D levels are significant higher in summer and in autumn in comparison with the levels of winter and spring, regardless of the examined years. Conclusion(s): Our data showed that the measures adopted to contain the covid-19 pandemic led to a reduction of serum levels of vitamin D in pediatric population, probably due to the reduced solar exposure. This may have severe consequences on the bone metabolism of those children who did not present optimal vitamin D levels even before the lockdown. Therefore, an adequate supplementation of vitamin D is necessary at least during the winter period in children living in Northern Italy.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: Functional gastrointestinal disorders are common gastrointestinal diseases. The pathophysiology is multifactorial and psychosocial distress worsens symptoms severity. Since the end of 2019 the world has been facing COVID-19 pandemic. The associated control measures have affected the psychological health of people. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the prevalence of functional gastrointestinal disorders among Italian children and adolescents. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The study sample is composed of 407 patients (187 males, 220 females), aged from 10 to 17 years. The mean age is 14.27 ± 2.24 years. The study was conducted through the Italian version of the Questionnaire on Pediatric Gastrointestinal Symptoms-Rome III Version. The prevalence of each disorder has been calculated as the ratio of affected subjects for each disease and the total number of effective cases for that specific disease. RESULTS: The study demonstrates that the prevalence of Functional Gastrointestinal Disorder in Italian children, during the COVD-19 pandemic, is higher, compared with the one reported in the previous studies. The most frequent disorders are Abdominal Migraine and Irritable Bowel Syndrome. CONCLUSIONS: Our study is the first one which provides data of the prevalence of Functional gastrointestinal disorders in sample of Italian adolescents, during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study underlines the need to focus on stress management, in order to reduce the effects of the lockdown on the psychological wellness of the youngest.