Characteristics and Outcomes of Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children: A Multicenter, Retrospective, Observational Cohort Study in Mexico (preprint)

Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children temporally associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (MIS-C), a novel hyperinflammatory condition secondary to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, is associated with severe outcomes such as coronary artery aneurysm and death. This multicenter, retrospective, observational cohort study including eight centers in Mexico, aimed to describe the clinical characteristics and outcomes of patients with MIS-C. Patient data were evaluated using latent class analysis to categorize patients into three phenotypes: toxic shock syndrome-like (TSSL)-MIS-C, Kawasaki disease-like (KDL)-MIS-C, and nonspecific MIS-C (NS-MIS-C). Risk factors for adverse outcomes were estimated using multilevel mixed-effects logistic regression. The study included 239 patients with MIS-C, including 61 (26%), 70 (29%), and 108 (45%) patients in the TSSL-MIS-C, KDL-MIS-C, and NS-MIS-C groups, respectively. Fifty-four percent of the patients were admitted to the intensive care unit, and 42%, 78%, and 41% received intravenous immunoglobulin, systemic glucocorticoids, and anticoagulants, respectively. Coronary artery dilatation and aneurysm were found in 5.7% and 13.2% of the patients, respectively. The rate of mortality due to SARS-CoV-2-related factors was 4.6%. Delay of [≥]10 days in hospital admission was associated with coronary artery aneurysm or dilatation (odds ratio [OR] 1.6, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.2- 2.0). Age [≥] 10 years (OR 5.6, 95% CI 1.4- 2.04), severe underlying condition (OR 9.3, 95% CI 2.8- 31.0), platelet count < 150,000/mm3 (OR 4.2, 95% CI 1.2- 14.7), international normalized ratio > 1.2 at admission (OR 3.8, 95% CI 1.05- 13.9), and serum ferritin concentration > 1500 mg/dL (OR 52, 95% CI 5.9- 463) were risk factors for death.

Economic issues of Severe Acute Respiratory Infections for influenza in Mexican children attended in a tertiary public hospital.

BACKGROUND: Influenza cause a clinical and economic burden for health systems and society. It is necessary to know the cost of the disease in order to perform cost-effectiveness assessments of preventive or treatment interventions. OBJECTIVE: Assess the costs of the care of children with influenza in a third level hospital in Mexico. METHODS: Longitudinal retrospective study based on the review of clinical files of children hospitalized with influenza. The use of resources used during their hospitalization in the emergency room, general ward, or PICU was logged, and the amount of supplies were multiplied by their corresponding prices to calculate the direct medical expenses. Descriptive statistics were used, and a GLM was adjusted in order to assess the effect of the clinical characteristics of the patients on the cost. Goodness of fit tests were performed. RESULTS: 132 files were reviewed, out of which 95% were of subjects who had comorbidities. Subjects admitted at the PICU generates the highest cost (mean $29,608.62 USD), when analyzing the total cost summarizing the three clinical areas (Emergency room, general ward and PICU) by age group, the highest cost was for patients over age 10 (mean $49,674.53 USD). Comorbidities increase the cost of hospitalization by $10,000.00 USD. CONCLUSIONS: Influenza causes a significant financial burden on the health system. Children with comorbidities increase the costs and children over 10 years uses a significant amount of resources and they are not a priority in immunization program. It is necessary to perform studies on the use of resources in the first and second attention levels, which represent the highest incidence of the disease.

Characteristics and outcomes of cases of children and adolescents with pediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome in a tertiary care centre in Mexico City. (preprint)

Background: pediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome (PIMS) is a complication of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in children that resembles Kawasaki syndrome and poses children at high risk of cardiorespiratory instability and/or cardiac damage. This study aims to describe the clinical presentation and outcomes of patients with PIMS in Mexico City. Methods: this was an observational study (May 1, 2020, to September 30, 2021) of children with PIMS according to Centers of Disease Control and Prevention case definition criteria, hospitalized in a single tertiary care pediatric center in Mexico City. Demographic characteristics, epidemiological data, medical history, laboratory tests, cardiology evaluations, treatment, and clinical outcomes were analyzed. Results: Seventy-five cases fulfilled case-definition criteria for PIMS (median age 10.9 years, IQR: 5.6-15.6). Fifteen (20%) had a severe underlying disease. Forty-eight cases (64%) were admitted to the intensive care unit, 33 (44%) patients required invasive mechanical ventilation, and 39 (52%) received vasopressor support. Two distinct groups of patients were identified: cluster 1 (n=60) who had rash or gastrointestinal symptoms and cluster 2 (n=15) with predominantly respiratory manifestations. Two cases (2.7%) died, both with severe underlying conditions. Five cases (6.7%) developed coronary aneurysms, all of them from cluster 1. Conclusion: clinical manifestations and outcomes are in general comparable what has been previously reported in international series. In our series, there was a high proportion of patients with severe respiratory involvement and positive RT-PCR SARS-CoV-2 and a low frequency of coronary aneurysms which suggests a possible higher proportion of children with severe acute COVID-19 in our included cases.