Clinical characteristics of twenty children with COVID⁃19

Objective: To investigate the characteristics of disease transmission, diagnosis, and treatment of COVID‑19 in children. Methods: We retrospectively studied 20 children with COVID‑19 from 4 medical centers in Hubei, China. Results: Among the 20 children, 18 (90.0%) were contaminated by close contact and characterized by family clustering. Seven cases (35.0%) had all family members infected, and 11 cases (55.0%) were confirmed by either of the parents infected. Twelve cases (60.0%) had fever, which was the primary symptom in 10 cases (50.0%). Only one child was in severe degree and combined with severe underlying disease (congenital heart disease). Seven cases (35.0%) presented typical ground‑glass opacity in CT. All patients were confirmed to be infected with SARS‑CoV‑2. Eleven cases (55.0%) had normal white blood cell counts, and one case (5.0%) with severe COVID‑19 showed a continuous decline in T cells subsets. Conclusion: COVID‑19 in children is transmitted by close contact and characterized by family clustering. Fever is the most common symptom or initial symptom. However, the sustained low levels of T cells and underlying diseases are risk factors for severe COVID‑19 children. © 2021, Editorial Board of Medical Journal of Wuhan University. All right reserved.