COVID-19 is Observed in Older Children During the Omicron Wave in New York City.
J Emerg Med
; 64(2): 195-199, 2023 02.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-2273689
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
The Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 has a predilection for the upper airways, causing symptoms such as sore throat, hoarse voice, and stridor.OBJECTIVE:
We describe a series of children with COVID-19-associated croup in an urban multicenter hospital system.METHODS:
We conducted a cross-sectional study of children ≤18 years of age presenting to the emergency department during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data were extracted from an institutional data repository comprised of all patients who were tested for SARS-CoV-2. We included patients with a croup diagnosis by International Classification of Diseases, 10th revision code and a positive SARS-CoV-2 test within 3 days of presentation. We compared demographics, clinical characteristics, and outcomes for patients presenting during a pre-Omicron period (March 1, 2020-December 1, 2021) to the Omicron wave (December 2, 2021-February 15, 2022).RESULTS:
We identified 67 children with croup, 10 (15%) pre-Omicron and 57 (85%) during the Omicron wave. The prevalence of croup among SARS-CoV-2-positive children increased by a factor of 5.8 (95% confidence interval 3.0-11.4) during the Omicron wave compared to prior. More patients were ≥6 years of age in the Omicron wave than prior (19% vs. 0%). The majority were not hospitalized (77%). More patients ≥6 years of age received epinephrine therapy for croup during the Omicron wave (73% vs. 35%). Most patients ≥6 years of age had no croup history (64%) and only 45% were vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2.CONCLUSION:
Croup was prevalent during the Omicron wave, atypically affecting patients ≥6 years of age. COVID-19-associated croup should be added to the differential diagnosis of children with stridor, regardless of age. © 2022 Elsevier Inc.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Respiratory Tract Infections
/
Croup
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Diagnostic study
/
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
/
Randomized controlled trials
Topics:
Vaccines
/
Variants
Limits:
Child
/
Humans
Country/Region as subject:
North America
Language:
English
Journal:
J Emerg Med
Journal subject:
Emergency Medicine
Year:
2023
Document Type:
Article
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