Abstract
It remains unknown how Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) prevention measures implemented on March 12, 2020, have affected the rate of pediatric infection-related hospitalizations in Denmark. Therefore, we investigated the rate of pediatric infection–related hospitalizations during the COVID-19 pandemic. We used a retrospective cohort design and included all Danish children < 18 years. Infection-related hospitalizations were assessed during study periods in 2020 vs. 2018/2019, and we computed incidence rate ratios (IRRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) using Poisson regression. In the 2020 study period, 3093 children were hospitalized with an infection, while the corresponding figures for 2018 and 2019 study periods were 4824 and 3830, respectively. When comparing the 2020 to the 2018/2019 study period prior to nationwide lockdown, we observed a decline in infection-related hospitalizations (12.68 (95% CI, 12.22–13.16) vs. 15.49 (95% CI, 15.12–15.86) per 1000 person-years). We further observed decreased IRRs, especially during the lockdown period (week 11: 0.64 (95% CI, 0.55–0.75); week 12: 0.26 (95% CI, 0.21–0.33); week 13: 0.13 (95% CI, 0.10–0.19)). Conclusion: The rate of pediatric infection-related hospitalizations in Denmark declined during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 compared to that in 2018/2019, with a 36% decline during initiation of the nationwide lockdown period.What is Known:• Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, several countries have implemented mitigation strategies such as lockdown of non-critical business functions. Most of these strategies have previously been proven effective on interruption of infection transmission.• It remains unclear how the mitigation strategies have affected the rate of pediatric infection–related hospitalizations.What is New:• Insight on how COVID-19 prevention measures have affected the frequency of infection-related hospitalization.• Valuable knowledge on how to act in potential future pandemics.
| Originalsprog | Engelsk |
|---|---|
| Tidsskrift | European Journal of Pediatrics |
| Vol/bind | 180 |
| Udgave nummer | 6 |
| Sider (fra-til) | 1955-1963 |
| Antal sider | 9 |
| ISSN | 0340-6199 |
| DOI | |
| Status | Udgivet - jun. 2021 |
Bibliografisk note
Funding Information:CP reported receiving speaking fees from Lundbeck Pharma A/S and research grants from the Danish Heart Foundation and the Eva and Henry Frænkel Memorial Foundation. GHG reported receiving research grants from Bristol-Myers Squibb, Pfizer, Boehringer Ingelheim, and Bayer. LK reported receiving lecture fees from Novartis and Bristol-Myers Squibb. CT-P reported receiving research grants from Bayer. EF reported receiving independent research grant from Janssen Pharmaceutical and BMS. KK reported receiving speaking fees from Novartis and research grants from the Laerdal Foundation. LBP, MPA, LØ, MDB, MS, and SH declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH, DE part of Springer Nature.
Copyright:
Copyright 2021 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.