Sandbox: HAR

Presentations

• Presentation of COVID-19 is less severe in children as compared to adults. Most of the children are asymptomatic.
• According to CDC, as of April 2, 2020, 1.7% confirmed cases of COVID-19 were reported in children aged <18 years age among the total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19.
• COVID-19 in children could range from asymptomatic presentation to mild to severe disease.
• The incubation period of SARS-CoV-2 varies from 2 to 14 days with most patients developing symptoms 3 to 7 days after exposure.

Symptoms

• Fever and Cough are one of the most common symptoms reported in children. One study showed fever is prevalent in 47.5% of children and cough in 41.5% among the 1124 children with COVID-19. According to the CDC, fever, and cough was reported in 56% and 54% of children with COVID 19
• Dyspnea, nasal congestion, pharyngeal erythema, and sore throat are also common presentations in children.
• Gastrointestinal symptoms-The gastrointestinal manifestation in COVID-19 positive children are diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal pain, nausea, and anorexia. Children can present with gastrointestinal symptoms in the absence of respiratory symptoms.
• Cutaneous Findings- The cutaneous findings in COVID-19 positive children range from petechiae to papulovesicular rashes to diffuse urticaria. These appear early in the course of COVID-19 and result secondary to viral replication or circulating cytokines. Many patients with COVID-19 are presenting with chilblains like lesions unrelated to cold. Chilblains are painful or itchy swellings of the toes and fingers, caused by small-vessel inflammation from repeated exposure to cold. A retrospective case series presented 22 children and adolescents with COVID-19 who presented with chillblains lesions.
• Neurological manifestation- The presentation of neurological manifestation in children is rare. However, a case report described a rare case of a 6-week old infant with COVID-19 who had 10-15 seconds episodes of upward gaze and bilateral leg stiffening.

• Neonates and Infants with COVID-19 are often asymptomatic or present with fever with or without mild cough and congestion.

Severity of Disease in Children with COVID-19

• Asymptomatic presentation-
  • A large number of children with COVID-19 are asymptomatic.
  • According to one study 14.2% of children were asymptomatic. Another study showed 18% of asymptomatic children with COVID-19.
• Mild Disease
  • Few numbers of children also present with mild manifestations of COVID-19.
  • A study showed 36.3% of children present with a mild form of the disease.
• Severe
  • 2.1% of children present with a severe form of COVID-19 disease.
  • Children with underlying comorbidities are more susceptible to getting severe COVID-19 disease.

Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C)

• It is a condition that causes inflammation of some parts of the body like heart, blood vessels, kidneys, digestive system, brain, skin, or eyes.
• According to recent evidence, it is suggested that children with MISC had antibodies against COVID-19 suggesting children had COVID-19 infection in the past.
• This syndrome appears to be similar in presentation to Kawasaki disease, hence also called Kawasaki -like a disease. It also shares features with staphylococcal and streptococcal toxic shock syndromes, bacterial sepsis, and macrophage activation syndromes. "www.rcpch.ac.uk" (PDF).

Pathophysiology

• Exact cause of MIS-C is unclear. It is suspected that it is caused by a delayed immune response to the SARS-CoV-2, causing inflammation of organs."Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) | Boston Children's Hospital".
• It is also suspected that it is occurring due to antibody-mediated reaction."Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) | Boston Children's Hospital".

Symptoms"www.rcpch.ac.uk" (PDF).

• Fever lasting 24 hours or longer.
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Abdominal pain
• Skin rash
• Conjuctivitis
• Redness or swelling of the lips and tongue
• Lethargy
• Redness or swelling of the hands or feet
• Confusion
• Headache
• Sore throat
• Syncope
• Lymphadenopath

Emergency Warning Signs

• Difficulty Breathing
• Chest pain
• New onset confusion
• Lethargy
• Cyanosis
• Abdominal pain

Laboratory Findings"www.rcpch.ac.uk" (PDF).

• Abnormal fibrinogen
• High CRP
• High D Dimer
• High Ferritin
• Hypoalbuminaemia
• Lymphopenia
• Neutrophilia
• Absence of other potential causative organisms.
• Anemia
• High IL-10
• High IL-6
• Raised CK
• Raised LDH
• Raised triglycerides
• Raised troponin
• Thrombocytopenia

Radiological Findings"www.rcpch.ac.uk" (PDF).

Test	Findings
Chest Xray	patchy symmetrical infiltrates, pleural effusion
Echocardiogram and EKG	myocarditis, valvulitis, pericardial effusion, coronary artery dilatation
Abdominal USG	colitis, ileitis, lymphadenopathy, ascites, hepatosplenomegaly

Diagnosis

Preliminary WHO case definition: Children and adolescents

• 0–19 years of age with fever >3 days

AND

• Two of the following:

1. Rash or bilateral non-purulent conjunctivitis or muco-cutaneous inflammation signs (oral, hands or feet)
2. Hypotension or shock
3. Features of myocardial dysfunction, pericarditis, valvulitis, or coronary abnormalities (including ECHO findings or elevated Troponin/NT-proBNP)
4. Evidence of coagulopathy (by PT, PTT, elevated D-Dimers)
5. Acute gastrointestinal problems (diarrhea, vomiting, or abdominal pain)

AND

• Elevated markers of inflammation such as ESR, C-reactive protein, or procalcitonin

AND

• No other obvious microbial cause of inflammation, including bacterial sepsis, staphylococcal or streptococcal shock syndromes

AND

• Evidence of COVID-19 (RT-PCR, antigen test or serology-positive), or likely contact with patients with COVID-19

Treatment

• All the children with MIS-C are treated as suspected COVID-19.
• Mild to Moderate cases of MIS-C are managed supportively.
• Anti-inflammatory treatments with Intravenous immunoglobulin(IVIG) with or without corticosteroids have shown a good response rate.
• Aspirin has been used primarily for its antiplatelet effect.
• The antiviral therapy where required are only given in the context of clinical trials(Eg RECOVERY TRIAL).

Prevention of MIS-C

• MIS-C can be prevented by reducing the risk of child exposure to COVID-19 infection.

Acute Heart Failure

• Acute Cardiac decompensation have been reported in children due to severe inflammatory state following COVID-19 infection. A case series describe 35 children in 14 centers admitted to PICU for cardiogenic shock, left ventricular dysfunction, and severe inflammatory state.

COVID-19 and HIV

Overview

• An observational prospective study found out that the incidence of HIV-infected individuals to be affected by SARS-CoV-2 was similar to the general population.
• Specific antiretroviral therapy did not affect COVID-19 severity.
• Immunosuppression(low CD4 cell counts) was associated with COVID-19 severity.
• Patients with HIV infection often have other comorbidities(lung disease, cardiovascular disease) therefore, increasing the risk for severe-COVID-19 disease.

Risk

• At present people with HIV who are at greatest risk of Severe COVID-19 infection are people -
  • who have lowCD4 cell count.
  • not on antiretroviral therapy.

Presentation

• There hasn't been any observable difference in clinical presentation among people with HIV infection as compared to the general population.
• Common symptoms for COVID-19 are
  • Fever or chills
  • Cough
  • Shortness of Breath or difficulty breathing
  • Fatigue
  • Muscle or Body aches
  • Headache
  • New loss of taste or smell
  • Sore Throat
  • Congestion or runny nose
  • Nausea or vomiting
  • Diarrhea

Recommendations for Patients with HIV

• Maintain the supply for antiretroviral therapy for a minimum of 30 days.
• Virtual visit and telemedicine should be considered for non-urgent care and non-adherence counseling
• People with suppressed HIV viral load and in stable health, should postpone their routine medical care and laboratory visits to the extent possible.
• If they develop symptoms of COVID-19 like fever, cough, shortness of breath, etc they should seek medical advice.
• They should make sure their vaccination status is uptodate.