Hematological parameters in children with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection

Abstract

Introduction. Recently, there has been a need to use more readily available parameters to assess the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection in children. Material and Methods. A single-center retrospective study included 30 children with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection who were admitted to the Isolation Department of the Institute for Child and Youth Health Care of Vojvodina from April to September 2020. A complete blood count with differential was performed. Additionally, systemic inflammatory index, neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio and plateletlymphocyte ratio were calculated. For comparison, age- and sex-matched 30 children negative for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 were included in the study. Results. In the period from April to September 2020, 30 laboratory-confirmed cases of coronavirus-19, aged 0 - 17 years, were admitted to the Institute for Child and Youth Health Care of Vojvodina. The age was not a risk factor for the development of coronavirus-19 (p = 0.707; OR: 1.018; 95% CI: 0.927 - 1.119). The comparison of hematological parameters of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 status showed that hemoglobin concentration (p < 0.01) and hematocrit (p < 0.01) were lower, and the percentage of neutrophil granulocytes (p < 0.05) was higher among severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 positive children. Furthermore, it was found that some severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 positive children had a higher (p < 0.01), while others had a lower (p < 0.01) percentage of lymphocytes. The systemic inflammatory index, the ratio of neutrophils to lymphocytes, and the ratio of platelets to lymphocytes, were not found to be statistically significantly different (p > 0.05). Conclusion. Low hemoglobin and hematocrit levels, a high percentage of neutrophil granulocytes, and a non-physiological percentage of lymphocytes (both, low and high) may have a diagnostic significance in children with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection.