Search

Context: Exploring clinical characteristics of coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) in children may help in prevention and treatment guidelines., Aims: The aim of the to describe the spectrum of pediatric COVID-19 in Saudi Arabia., Settings and Design: A multicenter, retrospective, cross-sectional study involving pediatric COVID-19 patients across all Saudi regions., Methods: All patients aged between 2 months and 18 years with a confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19 were included. The primary end point was the hospitalization., Statistical Analysis Used: Descriptive statistics were used to describe the baseline demographic data and clinical characteristics. Numerical data were explored using Kolmogorov-Smirnov test and Shapiro-Wilk test, while Chi-square or Fisher's exact test were used for categorical data., Results: Among the 654 pediatric COVID-19 patients, 4.7% ( n = 31) were hospitalized, with one patient only needing pediatric intensive care admission. Sex, breastfeeding, birth status, and the patients' living environment showed no significant association with hospitalization. Most children (80.3%, n = 525) were symptomatic, with two symptoms that were significantly associated with admission, namely, vomiting ( P = 0.007) and nausea ( P = 0.026). History of admission within the last year was identified in 10.4% ( n = 68) children but had no association with worse outcome. The median duration of hospitalization for the entire group was 5.5 days, with longest hospital stay for age group 7-12 years (median 6 days)., Conclusions: COVID-19 is usually a milder disease in children. Although having preexisting medical conditions was linked to a longer hospitalization, it was not associated with worse outcome. Continuous surveillance will allow additional characterization of the burden and outcomes of pediatric COVID-19-associated hospitalizations., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2021 Annals of Thoracic Medicine.)