Systemic inflammatory syndrome in children during COVID-19 pandemic in Ceará state, northeastern Brazil: an observational study

• Published in: Revista da Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical
• Main Authors: Luís Arthur Brasil Gadelha Farias, Magda Moura de Almeida, Pâmela Maria Costa Linhares, Bruno Cavalcante Fales de Brito Alves, Roberto Jorge Colares Duarte Filho, Roberio Dias Leite, Marco Aurelio Palazzi Safadi, Luciano Pamplona de Góes Cavalcanti
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical (SBMT) 2021
• Subjects: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children; Children; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Arctic
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1590/0037-8682-0383-2021; https://doaj.org/article/8c4fb331717a427898c5f598c9d05503

Abstract In this study, we report the occurrence of multisystemic inflammatory syndrome among 64 children (2 deaths) with recent severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2 (SARS-COV-2) infections in the northeast region of Brazil. The major clinical symptoms and signs reported were exanthema (60.9%), abdominal pain (56.3%), nausea and vomiting (46.9%), diarrhea (37.5%), and dyspnea (37.5%). Laboratory findings revealed that the levels of C-reactive protein (75.0%), hemoglobin (51.6%), D-dimer (48.4%), lymphocytes (43.8%), LDH (45.3%), AST (42.2%), ALT (51.6%), and ferritin (48.4%) were above the reference values for a given age and gender. The clinical findings were similar to those observed in Kawasaki disease, although it represents a separate entity, emphasizing the need for proactive surveillance and early treatment.