COVID-19 in a tertiary paediatric centre in Portugal: a single-centre retrospective study.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the demographic, clinical, laboratory and imaging features of the first 300 SARS-CoV-2-infected children presenting to a tertiary paediatric centre in Portugal. DESIGN: Single-centre, retrospective, descriptive study of paediatric patients who had a confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection from 7 March to 20 September 2020. SETTING: Tertiary paediatric referral centre (Hospital Dona Estefânia, Lisbon, Portugal). PATIENTS: 18 years or younger. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Incidence, mortality, age of infection, clinical characteristics, treatment prescribed and outcome. RESULTS: Three hundred patients with confirmed COVID-19 presented to the centre. One hundred and seventeen (39%) patients were admitted to the hospital: 69 with COVID-19 and 48 for other reasons. The most common symptoms in children admitted with COVID-19 were fever (49) and cough (38). Six patients required intensive care. Two children died and seven reported short-term sequelae. CONCLUSIONS: COVID-19 is usually a mild disease in children, but a small proportion of patients develop severe and critical disease. Fatal outcomes were rare and only occurred in children with severe previous medical conditions.

Clinical and Therapeutic Approach to Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients: A Pediatric Cohort in Portugal.

INTRODUCTION: Coronavirus disease 2019, or COVID-19, in children is usually a mild disease, but severe illness has been reported. Currently, the therapy benefits of antiviral experimental drugs are still uncertain. The main aim of this study is to describe the experience of a level III hospital regarding therapeutic management of hospitalized children with COVID-19 and to characterize clinical features and evolution. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This is a descriptive study of patients with COVID-19 in a level III pediatric hospital in Portugal between March and June 2020. Experimental drugs were administered according to the best scientific evidence at the time as 'off-label use'. RESULTS: Among 200 children with SARS-CoV-2 infection, 37 were admitted due to COVID-19. Median age was one year (23 days - 18 years), 43% had comorbidities and 20/37 (54%) received antiviral therapy. Hydroxychloroquine was administered in 13 patients, in monotherapy or combined with lopinavir/ritonavir or azithromycin. Lopinavir/ritonavir was administered in eight patients and three children were treated with remdesivir. The patients who were treated had pneumonia (14), multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (2), sepsis (2), myocarditis (1), acute respiratory distress syndrome (1), and mild illness with comorbidities (3). Other therapies included methylprednisolone and immunoglobulin (3), enoxaparin (2), antibiotics (16), oxygen (7), corticosteroids, and other inhaled therapy (16). DISCUSSION: Several treatment approaches have been proposed for severe COVID-19, even though none of them had been proven effective or approved for small children. Currently, remdesivir is approved for children aged above 12 years-old. Although 54% of our patients were treated with antivirals, it is important to understand that the favorable clinical evolution could be related with the natural course of the disease. CONCLUSION: A significant proportion of our population presented severe and critical disease, was hospitalized and received treatment according to the most recent data, although most patients had mild disease. COVID-19 treatment in children is a clinical challenge and clinical trials are urgently needed.

Introdução: A infeção SARS-CoV-2 em idade pediátrica cursa maioritariamente com doença ligeira. No entanto, pode ocorrer doença grave, ainda que com menor frequência. Atualmente, os benefícios das terapêuticas antivirais experimentais ainda são incertos. O objetivo deste estudo consiste em descrever a experiência de um hospital terciário no tratamento de crianças internadas por COVID-19 e caracterizar a clínica e evolução. Material e Métodos: Estudo descritivo em doentes até aos 18 anos de idade, internados com COVID-19 num hospital pediátrico de nível III em Portugal, de março a junho de 2020. Os fármacos antivirais foram administrados em regime de off-label. Resultados: Identificaram-se 200 casos de infeção SARS-CoV-2, dos quais 37 foram internados com COVID-19. A idade mediana foi de um ano (23 dias - 18 anos), 43% apresentavam comorbilidades e 20/37 (54%) receberam terapêutica antiviral. A hidroxicloroquina foi administrada em 13 doentes em monoterapia ou associada a lopinavir/ritonavir ou azitromicina. O lopinavir/ritonavir foi utilizado em oito doentes e três doentes receberam remdesivir. O tratamento antiviral foi aplicado a doentes com pneumonia (14), sépsis (2), síndrome inflamatório multisistémico pediátrico (2), síndrome dificuldade respiratória aguda (1), miocardite (1) e crianças com doença ligeira e comorbilidades (3). Realizaram-se também outras terapêuticas que incluíram metilprednisolona e imunoglobulina (3), enoxaparina (2), antibióticos (16), oxigenoterapia (7) e broncodilatadores e corticoides inalados (16). Discussão: Diversas abordagens terapêuticas têm sido sugeridas para casos graves de COVID-19, embora nenhuma seja até à data considerada eficaz, ou esteja aprovada em crianças pequenas. Atualmente, o remdesivir está aprovado para idades superiores a 12 anos. Apesar de 54% dos nossos doentes terem sido tratados com antivirais, é importante compreender que a evolução favorável poderá ter estado associada à evolução natural da doença. Conclusão: Uma percentagem significativa da população apresentou doença grave a crítica, com necessidade de internamento e tratamento, este último definido com base nas recomendações da comunidade científica à data, embora a maioria apresentasse doença ligeira. O tratamento da COVID-19 em idade pediátrica é um desafio, sendo urgente realizar ensaios clínicos relativos a esta matéria.