Abstract

Background: Limited clinical data are available regarding the impacts of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on children.

Objective: This study assessed the clinical characteristics, nutritional status, and disease severity in pediatric patients with COVID-19.

Methods: A retrospective study examined medical records of children with COVID-19 admitted to Abuzar Hospital (Ahvaz, Iran) for nine months. Data related to their clinical, nutritional status and demographic characteristics were documented.

Results: The present study included medical records of 500 patients. More than half of them were boys. Different levels of COVID-19 severity were observed in 202, 172, and 126 children as mild, moderate, and severe cases, respectively. Children with severe or moderate COVID-19 had substantially elevated levels of various inflammatory markers, blood urea nitrogen (BUN), gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT), neutrophils, alanine transaminase (ALT), creatinine, bilirubin, and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) compared to those with mild COVID-19 (p < 0.001). They had lower levels of lymphocytes and vitamin D, as well as longer hospital stays than children with mild COVID-19 (p < 0.001). In addition, 52% and 40.2% of patients had malnutrition and anemia, respectively. The majority of underweight and stunted children had moderate or severe COVID-19.

Conclusion: The current study revealed a high prevalence of malnutrition, anemia, insufficient levels of vitamin D, elevated levels of inflammatory markers, and abnormal liver and kidney function tests in children with severe or moderate cases of COVID-19 compared to those with mild COVID-19.

Keywords: Pediatric patients, nutritional status, COVID-19, disease severity, malnutrition, anemia.