TY - JOUR
T1 - Pediatric post COVID-19 condition: an umbrella review of the most common symptoms and associated factors
AU - Heidar Alizadeh, Aurora
AU - Nurchis, Mario Cesare
AU - Nurchis, Mario Cesare
AU - Garlasco, Jacopo
AU - Mara, Alessandro
AU - Pascucci, Domenico
AU - Damiani, Gianfranco
AU - Gianino, Maria Michela
PY - 2024
Y1 - 2024
N2 - Background: Although the long-term consequences of the Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic are
yet to be fully comprehended, a syndrome symptomatically akin to the COVID-19 disease has been defined, for
children and adolescents, in February 2023 by the World Health Organization (WHO) as ‘post COVID-19 condition’
(PCC). Potential consequences of COVID-19 that affect developmental milestones in children and adolescents
should be comprehended in their magnitude and duration. The aim is to investigate the most common symptoms
and predictors or risk factors for pediatric PCC. Methods: In this umbrella review, the population of interest was
defined as children and adolescents from 0 to 19 years old presenting PCC symptoms as defined by the WHO in the
International Classification of Diseases. The intervention considered was general follow-up activity to monitor the patients’
recovery status. No comparator was chosen, and the outcomes were symptoms of PCC and predictors or risk factors of
developing PCC. Methodological quality, risk of bias and the level of overlap between studies were assessed. A random-
effects meta-analytic synthesis of respective estimates with inverse variance study weighting was carried out, for the
primary studies included by the reviews retrieved, regarding predictors or risk factors reported. Results: We identified six
eligible systematic reviews, five with meta-analyses, from three databases. The most common symptoms reported
were fatigue and respiratory difficulties; female sex and older age were the most reported factors associated
with the development of pediatric PCC. Conclusions: A deeper understanding of pediatric PCC requires well-
designed and clearly defined prospective studies, symptom differentiation, and adequate follow-up.
AB - Background: Although the long-term consequences of the Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic are
yet to be fully comprehended, a syndrome symptomatically akin to the COVID-19 disease has been defined, for
children and adolescents, in February 2023 by the World Health Organization (WHO) as ‘post COVID-19 condition’
(PCC). Potential consequences of COVID-19 that affect developmental milestones in children and adolescents
should be comprehended in their magnitude and duration. The aim is to investigate the most common symptoms
and predictors or risk factors for pediatric PCC. Methods: In this umbrella review, the population of interest was
defined as children and adolescents from 0 to 19 years old presenting PCC symptoms as defined by the WHO in the
International Classification of Diseases. The intervention considered was general follow-up activity to monitor the patients’
recovery status. No comparator was chosen, and the outcomes were symptoms of PCC and predictors or risk factors of
developing PCC. Methodological quality, risk of bias and the level of overlap between studies were assessed. A random-
effects meta-analytic synthesis of respective estimates with inverse variance study weighting was carried out, for the
primary studies included by the reviews retrieved, regarding predictors or risk factors reported. Results: We identified six
eligible systematic reviews, five with meta-analyses, from three databases. The most common symptoms reported
were fatigue and respiratory difficulties; female sex and older age were the most reported factors associated
with the development of pediatric PCC. Conclusions: A deeper understanding of pediatric PCC requires well-
designed and clearly defined prospective studies, symptom differentiation, and adequate follow-up.
KW - covid-19
KW - pediatric
KW - post-covid
KW - covid-19
KW - pediatric
KW - post-covid
UR - http://hdl.handle.net/10807/263794
U2 - 10.1093/eurpub/ckae033
DO - 10.1093/eurpub/ckae033
M3 - Article
SN - 1101-1262
VL - 34
SP - 517
EP - 523
JO - European Journal of Public Health
JF - European Journal of Public Health
ER -