While SARS-CoV-2 infections in pediatrics have been described as mild respiratory infections, they can cause a variety of severe hyperimmune reactions and related inflammatory syndromes such as Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C). Moreover, the COVID-19 pandemic period itself has impacted the care of healthy children, as well as those children with chronic illnesses and special needs. There is a wide range of psychological disorders that surfaced due to social isolation, inability to attend school in person, and access to food. School education has been impacted for those with a low income and limited access to technology. In this series of articles, we wish to review and assess what type of damage SARS-CoV-2 can cause in children and how the conditions of the pandemic impacts childhood.
While the pandemic is ongoing, we continue to seek more data on how to treat COVID-19 infection and its related hyperimmune syndromes in children. We are also seeing severe impacts of the pandemic in child development and psychology. In this project, our goal is to:
1) Provide an overview of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 in the pediatric population
2) Assess and present the implications of SARS-CoV-2 infection in children from different perspectives such as the gastroenterological, rheumatological, hematological, oncological, neurological, pulmonological, and immunological perspectives
3) Review challenges in treating pediatric patients with complex medical conditions affected by SARS-CoV-2 in the absence of antiviral treatments approved by the FDA
4) Review and present evidence for children's psychiatric diseases that developed during the pandemic.
The scope of the contributions (review and original research articles) is to assess the impact of SARS-CoV-2 and the COVID-19 pandemic in children. Specific topics we are interested in are as follows.
Review articles - we would welcome review articles that address the following topics:
- Review of dermatological conditions following SAR-CoV-2 and current recommendations of treatments
- Review of neurological implications of SARS-CoV-2 infections
- Problems that may arise from remote school education - their impact on education and learning
- Neuropsychiatric and developmental issues due to isolation
- Depression and increase rate of suicidal ideation and suicidal behaviour in adolescence.
We would also welcome original research articles that address the following topics:
- Overview of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 in children, using aggregated electronic health record data
- The effect of domestic violence on children and child abuse rates
- The effect of the pandemic on childcare and vaccination schedules
- Autoimmune disease rates during the pandemic and relationship with virus-induced type-I interferon activation
- Infection rates in children with immune deficiencies during the pandemic, correlation with allergic disease incidence
- Incidence of allergies and asthma in children who were previously diagnosed during the pandemic
- Incidence of constipation in children during the pandemic, also in relation to the incidence of viral gastroenteritis.
We would also wish to include case reports on the following topics:
- Neurocognitive changes in patients after SARS-CoV-2 infection
- Skin rash concurrent with COVID-19 infections versus rash that develops post-acute infection
- Lung sequelae in pediatric ICU patients after COVID-19 infection.
While SARS-CoV-2 infections in pediatrics have been described as mild respiratory infections, they can cause a variety of severe hyperimmune reactions and related inflammatory syndromes such as Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C). Moreover, the COVID-19 pandemic period itself has impacted the care of healthy children, as well as those children with chronic illnesses and special needs. There is a wide range of psychological disorders that surfaced due to social isolation, inability to attend school in person, and access to food. School education has been impacted for those with a low income and limited access to technology. In this series of articles, we wish to review and assess what type of damage SARS-CoV-2 can cause in children and how the conditions of the pandemic impacts childhood.
While the pandemic is ongoing, we continue to seek more data on how to treat COVID-19 infection and its related hyperimmune syndromes in children. We are also seeing severe impacts of the pandemic in child development and psychology. In this project, our goal is to:
1) Provide an overview of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 in the pediatric population
2) Assess and present the implications of SARS-CoV-2 infection in children from different perspectives such as the gastroenterological, rheumatological, hematological, oncological, neurological, pulmonological, and immunological perspectives
3) Review challenges in treating pediatric patients with complex medical conditions affected by SARS-CoV-2 in the absence of antiviral treatments approved by the FDA
4) Review and present evidence for children's psychiatric diseases that developed during the pandemic.
The scope of the contributions (review and original research articles) is to assess the impact of SARS-CoV-2 and the COVID-19 pandemic in children. Specific topics we are interested in are as follows.
Review articles - we would welcome review articles that address the following topics:
- Review of dermatological conditions following SAR-CoV-2 and current recommendations of treatments
- Review of neurological implications of SARS-CoV-2 infections
- Problems that may arise from remote school education - their impact on education and learning
- Neuropsychiatric and developmental issues due to isolation
- Depression and increase rate of suicidal ideation and suicidal behaviour in adolescence.
We would also welcome original research articles that address the following topics:
- Overview of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 in children, using aggregated electronic health record data
- The effect of domestic violence on children and child abuse rates
- The effect of the pandemic on childcare and vaccination schedules
- Autoimmune disease rates during the pandemic and relationship with virus-induced type-I interferon activation
- Infection rates in children with immune deficiencies during the pandemic, correlation with allergic disease incidence
- Incidence of allergies and asthma in children who were previously diagnosed during the pandemic
- Incidence of constipation in children during the pandemic, also in relation to the incidence of viral gastroenteritis.
We would also wish to include case reports on the following topics:
- Neurocognitive changes in patients after SARS-CoV-2 infection
- Skin rash concurrent with COVID-19 infections versus rash that develops post-acute infection
- Lung sequelae in pediatric ICU patients after COVID-19 infection.
