Background: To date, information on COVID-19 pediatric patients is still sparse. We aimed to highlight the epidemiological and clinical data regarding SARS-CoV-2 infection in children and adolescents to improve the understanding of the disease in this age group and inform physicians during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: We conducted a retrospective, observational study in "Marie Curie" Emergency Children's Hospital from Bucharest, Romania. We analyzed clinical and epidemiological characteristics of the patients confirmed with SARS-CoV-2 infection, between April 1, 2020-October 31, 2020. Results: A total of 172 patients aged 0-18 years were included, 79 (45.93%) female and 93 (54.07%) male patients. 28 (16.28%) patients had co-morbidities (more often identified in asymptomatic group;p &lt; 0.0001). 47 (27.32%) had exposure to an identified source. 30 (17.44%) patients were asymptomatic;142 (85.56%) had mild or moderate disease. The most frequent symptoms were: Pyrexia (78.87%), digestive symptoms (50%), cough (40.14%). Chest X-ray was performed in 50 patients and it was abnormal in half of them, all being symptomatic. About 2/3 of the evaluated patients had normal leukocytes. The most common hematological change was lymphopenia;monocytes tended to be higher in symptomatic patients. About 40% of the patients were admitted;none required admission to ICU. No significant differences were found between symptomatic and asymptomatic patients regarding gender, age distribution, and exposure to a source. Conclusions: All the patients had asymptomatic, mild or moderate disease. Patients with comorbidities, classically considered high risk patients, presented the same pattern of disease.
Characteristics of the pediatric patients diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 infection in a Romanian children's hospital: A retrospective study