Comparative analysis of clinical features of SARS-CoV-2 and adenovirus infection among children

Virol J. 2020 Dec 10;17(1):193. doi: 10.1186/s12985-020-01461-4.

Abstract

Background: The new emerging coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) overall shares similar symptoms with other common respiratory viral infections. We aimed in this study to compare COVID-19 and human adenovirus (HAdV) infections in pediatric patients regarding the frequencies of major clinical symptoms and the potential disparities in laboratory and imaging parameters.

Methods: Following a case-control-like design, we built 72 age-matched pediatric COVID-19 and HAdV patient pairs. Their early symptoms and laboratory and imaging characteristics were then retrieved and compared.

Results: Fever and cough were the most common symptoms for both infections but were seen more often in HAdV than in COVID-19 patients (92% vs. 66% and 60% vs. 18%, respectively). Compared with COVID-19 patients, children with HAdV infection had statistically significantly higher values of neutrophil count, neutrophil percentage, activated partial thromboplastin time, prothrombin time, lactate dehydrogenase, C-reactive protein, procalcitonin but lower values of lymphocyte percentage, total bilirubin, potassium and sodium. Thoracic computed tomography also revealed more anomalies in HAdV patients than in COVID-19 patients (95% vs. 67%).

Conclusions: COVID-19 is an overall less symptomatic and less severe infection at admission compared to HAdV respiratory infection in pediatric population.

Keywords: Adenoviruses; COVID-19; Children; Respiratory infections; SARS-CoV-2.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study

MeSH terms

  • Adenovirus Infections, Human / blood
  • Adenovirus Infections, Human / diagnostic imaging
  • Adenovirus Infections, Human / pathology*
  • Adenoviruses, Human
  • COVID-19 / blood
  • COVID-19 / diagnostic imaging
  • COVID-19 / pathology*
  • Case-Control Studies
  • Child
  • Child, Preschool
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Infant
  • Male
  • SARS-CoV-2*
  • Tomography, X-Ray Computed