Dataset Information

SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern in children and adolescents with COVID-19: a systematic review.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

Infections by SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOCs) might affect children and adolescents differently than earlier viral lineages. We aimed to address five questions about SARS-CoV-2 VOC infections in children and adolescents: (1) symptoms and severity, (2) risk factors for severe disease, (3) the risk of infection, (4) the risk of transmission and (5) long-term consequences following a VOC infection.

Design

Systematic review.

Data sources

The COVID-19 Open Access Project database was searched up to 1 March 2022 and PubMed was searched up to 9 May 2022.

Eligibility criteria

We included observational studies about Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta and Omicron VOCs among ≤18-year-olds. We included studies in English, German, French, Greek, Italian, Spanish and Turkish.

Data extraction and synthesis

Two reviewers extracted and verified the data and assessed the risk of bias. We descriptively synthesised the data and assessed the risks of bias at the outcome level.

Results

We included 53 articles. Most children with any VOC infection presented with mild disease, with more severe disease being described with the Delta or the Gamma VOC. Diabetes and obesity were reported as risk factors for severe disease during the whole pandemic period. The risk of becoming infected with a SARS-CoV-2 VOC seemed to increase with age, while in daycare settings the risk of onward transmission of VOCs was higher for younger than older children or partially vaccinated adults. Long-term symptoms following an infection with a VOC were described in <5% of children and adolescents.

Conclusion

Overall patterns of SARS-CoV-2 VOC infections in children and adolescents are similar to those of earlier lineages. Comparisons between different pandemic periods, countries and age groups should be improved with complete reporting of relevant contextual factors, including VOCs, vaccination status of study participants and the risk of exposure of the population to SARS-CoV-2.

Prospero registration number

CRD42022295207.

SUBMITTER: Wiedenmann M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10565293 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern in children and adolescents with COVID-19: a systematic review.

Wiedenmann Margarethe M Ipekci Aziz Mert AM Araujo-Chaveron Lucia L Prajapati Nirmala N Lam Yin Ting YT Alam Muhammad Irfanul MI L'Huillier Arnaud G AG Zhelyazkov Ivan I Heron Leonie L Low Nicola N Goutaki Myrofora M

BMJ open 20231009 10

<h4>Objectives</h4>Infections by SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOCs) might affect children and adolescents differently than earlier viral lineages. We aimed to address five questions about SARS-CoV-2 VOC infections in children and adolescents: (1) symptoms and severity, (2) risk factors for severe disease, (3) the risk of infection, (4) the risk of transmission and (5) long-term consequences following a VOC infection.<h4>Design</h4>Systematic review.<h4>Data sources</h4>The COVID-19 Open Acces ...[more]

PMID: 37813543

Similar Datasets

Project description:BackgroundVaccines are critical cost-effective tools to control the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. However, the emergence of variants of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) may threaten the global impact of mass vaccination campaigns.AimsThe objective of this study was to provide an up-to-date comparative analysis of the characteristics, adverse events, efficacy, effectiveness and impact of the variants of concern for 19 COVID-19 vaccines.SourcesReferences for this review were identified through searches of PubMed, Google Scholar, BioRxiv, MedRxiv, regulatory drug agencies and pharmaceutical companies' websites up to 22nd September 2021.ContentOverall, all COVID-19 vaccines had a high efficacy against the original strain and the variants of concern, and were well tolerated. BNT162b2, mRNA-1273 and Sputnik V after two doses had the highest efficacy (>90%) in preventing symptomatic cases in phase III trials. mRNA vaccines, AZD1222, and CoronaVac were effective in preventing symptomatic COVID-19 and severe infections against Alpha, Beta, Gamma or Delta variants. Regarding observational real-life data, full immunization with mRNA vaccines and AZD1222 seems to effectively prevent SARS-CoV-2 infection against the original strain and Alpha and Beta variants but with reduced effectiveness against the Delta strain. A decline in infection protection was observed at 6 months for BNT162b2 and AZD1222. Serious adverse event rates were rare for mRNA vaccines-anaphylaxis 2.5-4.7 cases per million doses, myocarditis 3.5 cases per million doses-and were similarly rare for all other vaccines. Prices for the different vaccines varied from $2.15 to $29.75 per dose.ImplicationsAll vaccines appear to be safe and effective tools to prevent severe COVID-19, hospitalization, and death against all variants of concern, but the quality of evidence greatly varies depending on the vaccines considered. Questions remain regarding a booster dose and waning immunity, the duration of immunity, and heterologous vaccination. The benefits of COVID-19 vaccination outweigh the risks, despite rare serious adverse effects.

Dataset Information

SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern in children and adolescents with COVID-19: a systematic review.

Objectives

Design

Data sources

Eligibility criteria

Data extraction and synthesis

Results

Conclusion

Prospero registration number

Publications

SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern in children and adolescents with COVID-19: a systematic review.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets