Hospitalized children with COVID-19 confirmed: A pilot study

Introduction: the number of children confirmed with covid-19 in indonesia remains high compared to other countries (12.2%). 13.6% of all cases are hospitalized in quarantine rooms. this study aims to describe children with confirmed covid-19 who have been hospitalized in makassar, indonesia.methods: this pilot study was conducted in makassar city, one of the cities in indonesia with a high number of covid-19 cases, in october 2021. a total of 25 children participated through consecutive sampling. this study consisted of children hospitalized in january-august 2021 who had confirmed covid-19 and were admitted to quarantine or non-quarantine rooms. inclusion criteria were children under 18 years old and parents who volunteered to complete the questionnaire based on covid-19 prevention and control guidelines. the questionnaire focused on child and parent characteristics, covid-19 symptoms, and the number of confirmed cases. results: of the 25 children hospitalized with confirmed covid-19, 76% were hospitalized in quarantine rooms, 72% were boys, and their ages ranged from 0 to 13 years. the average number of siblings was 2.64±1.63, and the average length of hospital stay was 7.88±3.03 days. the most common symptoms were fever (68%), cough (44%), and diarrhea (28%). the majority of children had two symptoms (40%), were confirmed with covid-19 once (84%), and were hospitalized one time (95%).conclusions: the main characteristics of hospitalized children with confirmed covid-19 are non-school age and boys. they have multiple symptoms, and fever is the most common. a holistic approach to treating all children hospitalized with covid-19 should be taken. this study can be used as a baseline for formulating strategies and guidelines for preventing prolonged effects and treating hospitalized children with covid-19.keywords: covid-19 in children; confirmed children; covid-19 symptom; hospitalized children