COVID-19 in children and altered inflammatory responses
Eleanor J. Molloy & Cynthia F. Bearer
Pediatric Research (2020)
The COVID-19 pandemic while affecting all age-groups appears to be less severe in children. In this journal we have international contributions relaying experiences from paediatricians across the world. Patients under 18 years only account for 2% of severely affected patients. However children can still be vectors if they are asymptomatic and shedding the virus. Dong et al described a cohort of 2143 children with suspected infection. In 34% infection was confirmed but there was little critical illness and one death. There appeared to be proportionally more severe illness in infants, a result that could have be confounded by concomitant bronchiolitis(1). Chen H et al and others have also shown there is no evidence of vertical transmission in pregnant women (2-6), although this possibility may still exist. Possible reason for this disparity in severity between adults and children may related to differences in receptors in the Renin-angiotensin system (RAS) and altered inflammatory responses to pathogens.
