Post COVID-19 conditions in Children and Adolescents at 3 months following a Delta outbreak in Australia: a cohort study

BackgroundLong COVID remains incompletely understood in children and adolescents with scant Australian data available. We aimed to assess the impacts of the 2021 Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 outbreak on symptoms and functioning 12 weeks post-acute infection in a cohort of children and adolescents. MethodsThe parents (or next of kin) of 11864 children and adolescents from a population catchment who had mandatory contact with Sydney Childrens Hospital Network facilities during acute SARS-CoV-2 infection (confirmed by PCR) were contacted by email or text message. Findings1731 (17.7%) responded to an online survey assessing symptoms, functional impairment. 203 of the responders (11.7%) gave answers that were consistent with continued symptoms and/or functional impairment and were flagged for clinical review. Of the 169 subsequently clinically reviewed, many had already recovered (n=63, 37.3%) or had a pre-existing condition exacerbated by COVID-19 (18, 10.7%); 64 (37.9%) were diagnosed with a Post COVID Condition (PCC). Of these, a minority we considered to have features compatible with the United Kingdom consensus cases definition for Long COVID (n=21). InterpretationDuring an outbreak of the Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 an online questionnaire with clinical review follow-up provided evidence that a majority of children with COVID-19 had complete recovery at 12 weeks post infection, but those with persisting symptoms demonstrated a wide spectrum of severity and phenotype that comprises a likely significant burden that warrants attention for individuals and at a population level. FundingNew South Wales Health COVID-19 Emergency Response Priority Research Funding.