ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: There are limited data on outcomes of SARS-CoV-2 infection among infants (<1 year of age). In the absence of approved vaccines for infants, understanding characteristics associated with hospitalization and severe disease from COVID-19 in this age group will help inform clinical management and public health interventions. OBJECTIVE(S): The objective of this study was to describe the clinical manifestations, disease severity, and characteristics associated with hospitalization among infants infected with the initial strains of SARS-CoV-2. DESIGN/METHODS: This is a nationwide prospective observational study using the infrastructure of the Canadian Paediatric Surveillance Program. All cases of infants aged <1 year of age with microbiologically confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection were reported from April 8th 2020 to May 31st 2021, and were classified by disease severity and primary cause of hospitalization. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to identify infants' characteristics associated with hospitalization. RESULT(S): A total of 531 cases were reported, including 332 (62.5%) non-hospitalized and 199 (37.5%) hospitalized infants. Among hospitalized infants, 141 of 199 infants (70.9%) were admitted because of COVID-19-related illness, and 58 (29.1%) were admitted for reasons other than acute COVID-19. Amongst all cases with SARS-CoV-2 infection, the most common presenting symptoms included fever (66.5%), coryza (47.1%), cough (37.3%) and decreased oral intake (25.0%). In our main analysis, infants with a comorbid condition had higher odds of hospitalization compared to infants with no comorbid conditions, and infants <1 month had higher odds of hospitalization than infants aged 1-3 months (Table). In total, 20 infants (3.8%) met criteria for severe disease. CONCLUSION(S): We describe one of the largest cohorts of infants with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Overall, severe COVID-19 in this age group is uncommon with most infants having mild disease. Comorbid conditions and younger age were associated with COVID-19-related hospitalization amongst infants.
ABSTRACT
Background. There is limited data on outcomes of SARS-CoV-2 infection among infants (< 1 year of age). In the absence of any approved vaccines for infants, understanding the risk factors for hospitalization and severe disease from COVID-19 in this age group will help inform clinical management and targeted public health interventions. The objective of this study was to describe the clinical manifestations, disease severity, and risk factors for hospitalization among infants with SARS-CoV-2 infection in Canada. Methods. This is a nationwide prospective observational study using the infrastructure of the Canadian Paediatric Surveillance Program. All cases of infants aged < 1 year of age with microbiologically confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection were reported from April 8th 2020 to May 11th 2021, and classified by disease severity, and primary cause of hospitalization. Logistic regression was performed to identify risk factors for hospitalization and severe disease. Results. A total of 393 cases were reported, including 229 (58.3%) non-hospitalized and 164 (41.7%) hospitalized infants. The most common symptoms included fever (63.4%), runny nose (45.0%), cough (35.1%) and decreased oral intake (24.9%). Significant risk factors for hospitalization included younger age and presence of comorbid conditions (excluding prematurity), as shown in the Table. Among hospitalized infants, 108 (65.9%) were admitted because of COVID-19-related illness, and 52 (31.7%) were admitted for reasons other than COVID-19. A total of 31 (7.9%) infants developed severe or critical disease. Risk factors for severe disease included prematurity and younger age (Table). Conclusion. We describe one of the largest cohort of infants with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Severe disease in this age group is uncommon, with younger age and prematurity being significant risk factors for severe COVID-19.