When COVID-19 infected people across the globe, some people saw the symptoms linger long enough after the infection. The symptoms seen in adults differed in children of different age groups.
A study conducted by researchers at Mass General Brigham examined the most common long COVID symptoms in children and distinguished them.
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It was found that infants and toddlers (younger than 2 years old) were more likely to experience trouble sleeping, fussiness, poor appetite, stuffy nose, and cough. Preschool-aged children of the age 3 to 5 years old were more likely to have a dry cough and daytime tiredness/low energy. 472 infants/toddlers and 539 preschool-aged children were examined for the purpose of the study.
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"We found a distinguishable pattern for both age groups of young children, including symptoms that are different than what we see in older children and adults. The tools from this study can be used in future studies to better understand long COVID in young children and develop ways to care for them," said Andrea Foulkes, ScD, co-senior author of the study, to the media.
The research is deemed important as previous studies explored less on the long COVID symptom patterns in early childhood. With this knowledge, experts can identify, enhance care and attempt to prevent long COVID in this vulnerable population. The study also emphasised the need to characterise long COVID separately across age ranges.
The authors also mentioned that the symptoms reported in the study have been identified for research purposes, not for making a clinical diagnosis. Caregivers are encouraged to medical practitioners for more information regarding their child's health.
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