Eating habits and lifestyle in children with obesity during the COVID19 lockdown: a survey in an Italian center.

OBJECTIVES: The main aim of this study was to evaluate BMI changes in children and adolescent with obesity or overweight, analyzing the possible risk factors that contributed to weight gain during a pandemic-associated lockdown. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study was conducted at the Pediatric Endocrinology Department of a third-level University Hospital in Rome, including children and adolescents with overweight and obesity. Personal, anthropometrics data and other information about physical activity, eating habits and psychological aspects were collected. RESULTS: We included in our study 64 participants, of which 33 (51.6%) were patients with overweight and 31 (48.4%) with obesity. We divided patients in two groups: patients with pre-versus post-lockdown Δ-BMI > 0 (31, 48.4%) and patients with Δ-BMI < 0 (33, 51.6%). Our data showed that patients whose BMI increased were more sedentary (p=0.024 for physical activity and p=0.005 for hours spent with videogames) during the pandemic. As for the eating habits more than half of the subjects (67.2%) had increased the consumption of homemade desserts, bread, pasta and pizza, and a worse diet was found in patients with BMI gain (p=0.000). Regarding the psychic condition the 80% of patients reported psychological discomfort, and patients with an increase in BMI had episodes of emotional feeding more frequently (p=0.016). CONCLUSIONS: The COVID19 pandemic has had disastrous effects not only directly, but also indirectly through the lockdown especially on some categories, such as adolescents with overweight and obesity. The results indicate that it also causes significant changes in lifestyle, physical inactivity and psychological problems among children and adolescents with obesity/overweight.

Telemedicine for adult congenital heart disease patients during the first wave of COVID-19 era: a single center experience.

AIM: To summarize our experience on the implementation of a telemedicine service dedicated to adult congenital heart disease (ACHD) patients during the lockdown for the first wave of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). METHODS: This is a prospective study enrolling all ACHD patients who answered a questionnaire dedicated telematic cardiovascular examination. RESULTS: A total of 289 patients were enrolled, 133 (47%) were male, 25 (9%) were affected by a genetic syndrome. The median age was 38 (29-51) years, whereas the median time interval between the last visit and the telematic follow-up was 9.5 (7.5-11.5) months. Overall, 35 patients (12%) reported a worsening of fatigue in daily life activity, 17 (6%) experienced chest pain, 42 (15%) had presyncope and 2 (1%) syncope; in addition, 28 patients (10%) presented peripheral edema and 14 (5%) were orthopneic. A total of 116 (40%) patients reported palpitations and 12 had at least one episode of atrial fibrillation and underwent successful electrical (8) or pharmacological (4) cardioversion. One patient was admitted to the emergency department for uncontrolled arterial hypertension, five for chest pain, and one for heart failure. Two patients presented fever but both had negative COVID-19 nasal swab. CONCLUSION: During the COVID-19 pandemic, the use of telemedicine dramatically increased and here we report a positive experience in ACHD patients. The postpandemic role of telemedicine will depend on permanent regulatory solutions and this early study might encourage a more systematic telematic approach for ACHD patients.