Majallah-i dānishgāh-i ̒ulūm-i pizishkī-i Arāk (Nov 2020)
Epidemiology, Transmission Methods, Clinical Manifestations, Radiological Symptoms, Prognosis and Treatment of COVID-19 in Children
Abstract
Background and Aim: In December 2019, the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19) was first identified in Wuhan, China, and then spread rapidly around the world, such that the World Health Organization reported it as a pandemic. This study aims to review the epidemiological findings, transmission methods, clinical manifestations, radiological symptoms, prognosis and treatment of COVID-19 in children, as well as the differences caused by the virus between children and adults. Methods & Materials: The search was conducted in databases such as PubMod, Scopus, ScienceDirect and Google Scholar using the keywords “COVID-19”, “Coronavirus”, “Children”, and “Pandemic”. Ethical Considerations: Ethical principles have been observed in accordance with the guidelines of the National Ethics Committee and the COPE regulations. Results: Most of the data related to COVID-19 are related to the course of this disease in adults and related information for children is limited. Most findings suggested that the course of the disease is milder in children and the infection caused by the virus has a better prognosis in children. Due to the mild clinical symptoms in children, many of them are not diagnosed in the early stages of the infection. With the increase in the number of cases worldwide, the prevalence of this disease in children is certainly increasing. Conclusion: COVID-19 has milder clinical symptoms and a better prognosis in children. Today, no vaccine or antiviral drug has been developed for this disease; hence, prevention is the best solution.