The Comparison of Children Who Were Diagnosed with COVID-19 in the First and the Second Waves of the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic

OBJECTIVE: To compare the clinical and laboratory findings and short-term outcomes of those children diagnosed with COVID-19 in the first and second waves of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted at a suburban community hospital during a 1-year period. All children who were less than 18 years of age and confirmed with COVID-19 were included in the study population. The demographics, clinical features, laboratories, treatments given, hospitalizations, and outcomes were analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 198 patients were enrolled; median age was 9.3 years. One-hundred four patients were diagnosed with COVID-19 disease in the first wave and 94 (47.5%) patients were diagnosed in the second wave of the pandemic. Those patients who were diagnosed with COVID-19 in the first wave of the pandemic were significantly younger than those in the second wave (medians: 2.7 years vs. 15 years respectively, P < .001). Intra-familial contact was detected in 66.4% vs. 33.6% in the first and second waves of the pandemic, respectively (P < .001). Asymptomatic patients were higher in the second wave than in the first wave (P < .001). Additionally, moderate-to-critically ill patients were significantly higher in the first wave than in the second wave (P < .001). The rate of multisystem inflammatory syndrome (MIS-C) cases was 0.32% in this study. CONCLUSION: In children, COVID-19 disease affected older children, there was less intra-familial contact and the severity of the disease was milder in the second wave of the pandemic in comparison to the first wave. MIS-C was encountered in the second wave of the pandemic.