Post-COVID syndrome in children with chronic nonspecific lung diseases

Aim. To determine the course features of the post-COVID syndrome in children with chronic nonspecific lung diseases (cystic fibrosis, congenital bronchial and lung malformations, asthma). Materials and methods. The study was conducted at the clinical base of the Department of Pediatrics and Pediatric Rheumatology of the Filatov Clinical Institute of the Sechenov University – National Medical Research Center for Children's Health from November 2020 to April 2023. The bi-directional single-center study included patients aged 1 month to 17 years 11 months who had a new coronavirus infection. The analysis included 69 patients with concomitant chronic nonspecific lung diseases: cystic fibrosis, congenital bronchial and lung malformations, and asthma. All patients were assessed at an average of 1 year (±2 months) after the new coronavirus infection using the ISARIC COVID-19 standardized questionnaire for children. The prevalence of post-COVID syndrome, the frequency of persistent symptoms, and the consequences of the new coronavirus infection in the group of children with concomitant chronic nonspecific lung diseases were determined. The rate of underlying disease exacerbations before and 1 year after COVID-19 was also retrospectively assessed. Results. One year after COVID-19 infection, patients with chronic nonspecific lung diseases do not consider themselves fully recovered from the disease and experience several persistent symptoms affecting various spheres of life: fatigue, physical activity, loss of appetite, as well as cognitive impairment, including difficulty concentrating, memory impairment, slip in speech, disrupting the daily life of the child and his family members and causing learning difficulties. To improve the quality of care for children with chronic nonspecific lung diseases who survived the COVID-19, programs for rehabilitation and treatment for post-COVID syndrome are needed, considering the possibility of developing both physical and neurocognitive disorders.