A Multicentered Study on Epidemiologic and Clinical Characteristics of 37 Neonates With Community-acquired COVID-19
Mehmet Kenan Kanburoğlu, Cüneyt Tayman, Mehmet Yekta Öncel, İlke Mungan Akın, Emrah Can, Nihat Demir, Sema Arayıcı, Demet Orhan Baser, İbrahim Caner, Aslı Memişoğlu, Saime Sündüs Uygun, Selahattin Akar, Mustafa Ali Akın, Emel Ataoğlu, Handan Bezirganoğlu, Leyla Bilgin, Şenol Bozdağ, Serdar Cömert, Resat Gurpinar, Ebru Yalın İmamoğlu, Timucin Imdadoglu, Fatma Narter, Рамазан Оздемир, Handan Hakyemez Toptan, Emine Esin Yalınbaş, Akan Yaman, Ömer Erdeve, Esin Koç
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) primarily affects adults and spares children, whereas very little is known about neonates. We tried to define the clinical characteristics, risk factors, laboratory, and imagining results of neonates with community-acquired COVID-19. METHODS: This prospective multicentered cohort study included 24 neonatal intensive care units around Turkey, wherein outpatient neonates with COVID-19 were registered in an online national database. Full-term and premature neonates diagnosed with COVID-19 were included in the study, whether hospitalized or followed up as ambulatory patients. Neonates without severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) via reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction testing or whose mothers had been diagnosed with COVID-19 during pregnancy were excluded. RESULTS: Thirty-seven symptomatic neonates were included. The most frequent findings were fever, hypoxemia, and cough (49%, 41%, 27%, respectively). Oxygen administration (41%) and noninvasive ventilation (16%) were frequently required; however, mechanical ventilation (3%) was rarely needed. Median hospitalization was 11 days (1-35 days). One patient with Down syndrome and congenital cardiovascular disorders died in the study period. C-reactive protein (CRP) and prothrombin time (PT) levels were found to be higher in patients who needed supplemental oxygen (0.9 [0.1-8.6] vs. 5.8 [0.3-69.2] p = 0.002, 11.9 [10.1-17.2] vs. 15.2 [11.7-18.0] p = 0.01, respectively) or who were severe/critical (1.0 [0.01-8.6] vs. 4.5 [0.1-69.2] p = 0.01, 11.7 [10.1-13.9] vs. 15.0 [11.7-18.0] p = 0.001, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Symptomatic neonates with COVID-19 had high rates of respiratory support requirements. High CRP levels or a greater PT should alert the physician to more severe disease.