ABSTRACT
Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has affected human life for more than a year. Coronavirus disease 2019 is well known for its respiratory manifestations;however, other important symptoms help with its diagnosis. Although clinical presentations in adults have been understood, clinical data in pediatric COVID-19 cases are still lacking. Objective(s): We investigated gastrointestinal (GI) manifestations of COVID-19 in pediatric cases. Method(s): This study included 184 cases with GI manifestations referred to the pediatric emergency department of Namazi hospital from 20 March to 20 November 2020. Their clinical and laboratory data were extracted and analyzed with SPSS22. Result(s): Of 184 patients, 51 had positive SARS-CoV-2 PCR results. The most common symptom in SARS-CoV-2-positive patients was vomiting in 22 (43%) patients, followed by watery diarrhea in 12 (23.5%) and dysentery in 11 (21%). Significantly elevated CRP (P value = 0.002), ESR (P value < 0.001), and lymphocyte count (P value = 0.037) were found in PCR-positive patients. Conclusion(s): Our result demonstrates that COVID-19 could present with different GI symptoms. Also, the symptoms and lab data could help clinicians diagnose COVID-19, besides other differential diagnoses in pediatric patients with GI symptoms. Copyright © 2022, Author(s).
ABSTRACT
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was reported in Wuhan, China, in late December 2019 and soon became the most serious global health challenge due to the high rate of human-to-human transmission. The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a single-stranded RNA virus and belongs to the large Coronaviridae family [1]. The pathogenesis of the COVID-19 still remains poorly understood. Cytokine storm, a hyper-inflammatory state, is considered one of the most important causes of respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and death in patients with COVID-19. Clinical studies have reported that there is a strong association between the level of inflammatory cytokines and the severity of the COVID-19 [2]. The prognosis of the COVID-19 is good in most patients;however, in a small number of patients, it develops into ARDS and subsequently, death within a short time [1]. Given that there is no specific antiviral drug for the treatment of the disease, suppression of cytokine storms using FDA-approved drugs with multiple mechanisms of action may reduce the COVID-19-related mortality.