Table 1.
Characteristics of the study cohort
| Characteristics | Cases with MIS-C (n=30) | Severe/Critical cases with COVID-19 (n=22) | p** |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age, years, median (min–max) | 9 (1–17) | 12 (0–17) | 0.56 |
| Male, n (%) | 16 (53.3) | 15 (68.2) | 0.29 |
| Known contact with a COVID-19 case (n, %) | 26 (86.7) | 18 (81.8) | 0.63 |
| SARS-CoV-2 PCR positive (n, %) | 4 (14.3) | 22 (100) | <0.001 |
| SARS-CoV-2 PCR negative (n, %) | 26 (86.7) | 0 | NA |
| SARS-CoV-2 IgG serology in PCR positive patients | |||
| Positive | 3 | 0 | |
| Negative | 1 | 0 | |
| SARS-CoV-2 IgG serology in PCR negative patients | |||
| Positive | 25 (96.1) | 0 | |
| Negativea | 1 (4.2) | 0 | |
| Underlying disease (n, %) | |||
| None | 25 (83.3) | 9 (40.9) | <0.001 |
| Underlying disease | 5 (16.7) | 13 (59.0) | |
| Chronic pulmonary diseases | 2 (6.7) | 2 (9.1) | |
| Neurometabolic/genetic diseases | 0 | 6 (27.3) | |
| Hematologic/oncologic diseases | 0 | 3 (13.6) | |
| Obese | 2 (6.7) | 0 | |
| Type 1 DM | 1 (3.3) | 0 | |
| Clinical presenting features* (n, %) | |||
| Fever | 30 (100) | 22 (100) | 1.0 |
| Duration of fever before hospitalization | 5 (1–12) | 2 (1–4) | <0.001 |
| (d), median (min–max) | |||
| <3 days | 4 (13.3) | 20 (90.5) | |
| 4 days | 9 (30) | 2 (9.1) | <0.001 |
| >5 days | 17 (56.7) | 0 | |
| Rash | 21 (70) | 1 (4.5) | <0.001 |
| Bilateral conjunctival injections | 29 (96.7) | 1 (4.5) | <0.001 |
| Peripheral extremity edema | 23 (76.7) | 2 (9.1) | <0.001 |
| Chest pain | 20 (76.9) | 5 (26.3) | <0.001 |
| Cough | 4 (13.3) | 15 (68.2) | <0.001 |
| Respiratory distress | 21 (70) | 17 (77.3) | 0.56 |
| Tachycardia | 29 (96.7) | 17 (77.3) | 0.03 |
| Abdominal pain | 25 (83.3) | 8 (36.4) | <0.001 |
| Vomiting | 21 (70.0) | 8 (36.4) | 0.02 |
| Diarrhea | 11 (36.7) | 6 (27.3) | 0.48 |
| Headache | 7 (23.3) | 2 (9.5) | |
| Lethargy, altered mental status | 20 (69) | 3 (13.6) | 0.28 |
| Myalgia | 22 (88) | 7 (31.8) | <0.001 |
| Organomegaly (hepatomegaly, splenomegaly, or both) | 23 (76.7) | 7 (33.3) | 0.002 |
| Radiological findings, n (%) | |||
| Abnormal chest X-ray | 21 (70.0) | 17 (81.0) | 0.38 |
| Abnormal chest tomography | 14 (93.3) | 18 (85.7) | 0.47 |
| Hospitalization | |||
| Hospital length of stay (days), median (min–max) | 7 (3–29) | 8 (3–31) | 0.12 |
| ICU admission n, % | 14 (46.7) | 18 (81.8) | 0.01 |
| Length of ICU stay (days), median (min–max) | 4 (1-19) | 5 (1-25) | 0.07 |
| Respiratory support, n (%) | 0.018 | ||
| None | 14 (46.7) | 6 (27.3) | |
| Oxygen only | 7 (23.3) | 8 (36.4) | |
| High flow support | 0 | 2 (9.1) | |
| Non-invasive ventilation | 6 (20.0) | 0 | |
| Invasive mechanical ventilation | 3 (10.0) | 6 (27.3) | |
| Complication, n (%) | 0.71 | ||
| Myocarditis | 2 (6.7) | 3 (13.6) | |
| Perimyocarditis | 4 (13.3) | 0 | |
| Pericarditis | 4 (13.3) | 1 (4.5) | |
| Heart Failure | 10 (33.3) | 3 (13.6) | |
| Multiorgan failure | 4 (13.3) | 4 (18.8) | |
| Sepsis | 0 | 1 (4.5) | |
| Coronary artery aneurysms | 0 | 1 (4.5) | |
| Treatments during admission, n (%) | |||
| Vasoactive infusion | 13 (43.3) | 6 (27.3) | |
| Plasma exchange | 14 (46.7) | 0 | |
| Corticosteroids (2 mg/kg/day) | 27 (90) | 11 (50) | |
| High-dose corticosteroids (30 mg/kg/day) | 1 (3.3) | 0 | |
| Intravenous immunoglobulin | 30 (100) | 7 (31.8) | |
| Biologic immunomodulationb | 26 (86.7) | 1 (4.5) | |
| Outcome, n (%) | 0.03 | ||
| Still hospitalized | 2 (6.7) | 0 | |
| Recovered | 28 (93.3) | 19 (86.4) | |
| Mortality | 0 | 3 (13.6) | |
NA not applicable.
aOne case with no any PCR and serology positivity had a strong COVID-19 exposure in his family.
bOne patient was treated with tocilizumab and 26 with anakinra.
*Percentages are computed in complete cases, as some variables contain missing value.
** Significant values are shown as bold