Post coronavirus disease 2019 condition in children at a children's hospital in Japan

Background Acute coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) is associated with chronic symptoms. These have been termed the “post COVID‐19 condition.” The data on this condition in children are still limited. We therefore aimed to elucidate the characteristics of this post COVID‐19 condition. Methods Children referred to a long COVID‐19 clinic were included at Tokyo Metropolitan Children's Medical Center between October 2021 and July 2022. Children with another diagnosis and those who failed to meet criteria for post COVID‐19 condition were excluded. Demographic and clinical data were collected retrospectively. Results Of 33 referrals, nine were excluded, and 24 fulfilled the criteria for post COVID‐19 condition. The median age and percentage of girls were 12.5 (IQR: 11–13) years and 29.2%, respectively. All the patients had mild, acute COVID‐19. Dysgeusia and brain fog was observed more frequently during the Delta and Omicron variant periods, respectively. School absenteeism >4 weeks was observed in 41.6% of the patients. Common symptoms included malaise, headache, dysgeusia, and dysosmia. The median duration of post COVID‐19 condition was 4.5 (IQR: 2.8–5.2) months. Pain management and counseling using the pacing approach were the most commonly offered treatments. Symptom resolution and improvement was observed in 29.2% and 54.2% of the patients, respectively. Conclusions One third of the patients referred for long COVID did not fit the definition of the post COVID‐19 condition. After a median follow up of 4.5 months, the majority of the cases resolved or improved.