D.S. Ong , P.V. Licciardi , K. Mulholland , L.A.H. Do
{"title":"An opportunity missed: Strengthening health system data on multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children from low- and middle-income countries in Asia","authors":"D.S. Ong , P.V. Licciardi , K. Mulholland , L.A.H. Do","doi":"10.1016/j.puhip.2024.100535","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><p>Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) is a severe complication associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection. The clinical epidemiology of MIS-C is not completely understood in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) due to limited reporting, including in Asia where there was a substantial burden of COVID-19. We aimed to discuss the challenges of diagnosing MIS-C and factors which may cause children from Asian LMICs to have an increased risk of MIS-C.</p></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><p>Not applicable.</p></div><div><h3>Results</h3><p>The burden of MIS-C in Asian LMICs may be disproportionately high due to underlying risk factors, resource-limited health systems, and the increased infectivity and transmissibility of recent SARS-CoV-2 variants. Complex clinical features of MIS-C contributed to missed or delayed diagnosis and treatment, while underlying risk factors including ethnicity, chronic health conditions, and socioeconomic factors may have predisposed children in Asian LMICs to MIS-C.</p></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><p>There was a lack of data on the clinical epidemiology of MIS-C in Asian LMICs during the COVID-19 pandemic, despite reports of higher paediatric mortality rates compared to high-income countries. This highlights the need for LMICs to have strong surveillance systems to collect high-quality and timely data on newly emerging complications associated with a pandemic, such as MIS-C. This will lead to rapid understanding of these emerging complications, and inform clinical management, disease prevention and health system planning.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":34141,"journal":{"name":"Public Health in Practice","volume":"8 ","pages":"Article 100535"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2000,"publicationDate":"2024-08-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666535224000727/pdfft?md5=82d8a6a413df0c354925d7c673a1222b&pid=1-s2.0-S2666535224000727-main.pdf","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Public Health in Practice","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666535224000727","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"PUBLIC, ENVIRONMENTAL & OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Background
Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) is a severe complication associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection. The clinical epidemiology of MIS-C is not completely understood in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) due to limited reporting, including in Asia where there was a substantial burden of COVID-19. We aimed to discuss the challenges of diagnosing MIS-C and factors which may cause children from Asian LMICs to have an increased risk of MIS-C.
Methods
Not applicable.
Results
The burden of MIS-C in Asian LMICs may be disproportionately high due to underlying risk factors, resource-limited health systems, and the increased infectivity and transmissibility of recent SARS-CoV-2 variants. Complex clinical features of MIS-C contributed to missed or delayed diagnosis and treatment, while underlying risk factors including ethnicity, chronic health conditions, and socioeconomic factors may have predisposed children in Asian LMICs to MIS-C.
Conclusions
There was a lack of data on the clinical epidemiology of MIS-C in Asian LMICs during the COVID-19 pandemic, despite reports of higher paediatric mortality rates compared to high-income countries. This highlights the need for LMICs to have strong surveillance systems to collect high-quality and timely data on newly emerging complications associated with a pandemic, such as MIS-C. This will lead to rapid understanding of these emerging complications, and inform clinical management, disease prevention and health system planning.