Digestive manifestations of Covid-19 in children: a retrospective study.

Background: The world is currently facing a pandemic due to a new species of the Coronaviridae family called SARS-CoV-2, discovered in the city of Wuhan in China in December 2019. The WHO has named the resulting disease COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019). It has been a global health problem due to its major socio-economic damage. The aim of this study was to show the prevalence of gastrointestinal and hepatic manifestations in symptomatic children with COVID-19. Methods: We performed a retrospective study, including 36 symptomatic children infected by SARS-CoV-2 hospitalized at the mother and child hospital of university hospital of Mohammed VI, Marrakech in Morocco, over a period of 7 months. Clinical and biological manifestations of the digestive system were evaluated for all patients. Results: The digestive symptomatology came in second place after the respiratory manifestations. 14 patients (38.89 % of symptomatic patients) in our study had digestive symptoms on admission: 12 (33.33%) presented with diarrhea, 4 (11.11%) had abdominal pain and only one child (2.78%) had vomiting. Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) was elevated in one patient, while alanine transaminase (ALT) was elevated in 6 patients. The prothrombin level was normal in all patients. All patients were discharged with good general condition without morbidity and mortality. Conclusion: This study concludes with the high prevalence of digestive manifestations of COVID-19 in symptomatic children. There were no severe clinical or biological abnormalities in our study. Digestive manifestations during COVID-19 in children are frequent, which requires the awareness of health professionals.

Bone Marrow Infiltration in Rosai-Dorfman Disease.

Rosai-Dorfman disease (RDD) is a rare and benign nonLangerhans cell histiocytosis. RDD commonly affects children and young adults typically presenting with massive, painless, and bilateral cervical lymphadenopathy. Extranodal involvement is present in about 40% of cases, and bone marrow infiltration is rare and unusual. RDD prognosis is usually good, however, involvement of bone marrow is associated with poor prognosis. We report a case of RDD with bone marrow involvement occurring in a 5-year-old female. She was admitted for asthenia, gingival bleeding, and diffuse bone pain without fever. Physical examination showed pallor, petechiae over the abdomen, painless and bilateral cervical lymphadenopathy, and several bony nodules, without splenomegaly or hepatomegaly. Cell blood count revealed microcytic hypochromic anemia with thrombocytopenia. Bone marrow aspiration showed infiltration by large histiocytes with hypochromatic nuclei and abundant vacuolated cytoplasm without emperipolesis. Biopsies of bone marrow, lymph node, and bone revealed immunohistochemical features of RDD: the histiocytes were positive for CD68 and S100 protein, but negative for CD1a. The patient initially received symptomatic treatment. One week after admission, she died of septic shock before the final establishment of RDD diagnosis. This case report highlights that bone marrow involvement in RDD is rare and associated with poor prognosis. We also aim to emphasize the obligation of bone marrow exploration in patients with RDD and presenting cytopenias in order to make an early diagnosis of bone marrow infiltration.

Acute Vision Loss and Conjunctival Hemorrhage as Telltale Symptoms of PIMS-TS.

There is a global concern about children presenting with inflammatory syndrome with variable clinical features during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. This paper reports the first pediatric case of bilateral serous retinal detachment and conjunctival hemorrhage as a revealing pattern of the pediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome temporally associated with SARS-CoV-2 (PIMS-TS). Despite the severity of multisystemic involvement, the management with steroids was very successful. Complete remission was obtained within 3 months of acute onset.

Challenges in the Diagnosis and Management of Nephrotic Syndrome in a Child With Multisystemic Tuberculosis.

We report the case of a child who had tuberculosis associated with nephrotic syndrome. In this case, it was difficult to identify if the renal involvement was due to renal infection with mycobacterium tuberculosis, the consequence of nephrotoxicity of anti-bacillary drugs, or due to new onset of nephrosis. Management was complex as the use of high-dose steroids can disseminate the infection.

Protein-Losing Enteropathy Associated with Thrombotic Microangiopathic Features Revealing Hirschsprung's Disease in a Child.

We report the case of a 4-year-old boy with protein-losing enteropathy, leading to severe malnutrition. Associated thrombotic microangiopathic features made diagnosis difficult and challenging.

Third Cranial Nerve Palsy Presenting with Unilateral Diplopia and Strabismus in a 24-Year-Old Woman with COVID-19.

BACKGROUND Coronavirus disease (COVID 19) is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and is the causative agent of a serious disease that is of great global public health concern. Palsy of the third cranial nerve is very rare in patients with confirmed 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). We describe the case of a patient with an incomplete palsy of the left third cranial nerve sparing the pupils in the context of SARS-CoV-2 virus infection. CASE REPORT We report the case of a 24-year-old woman with confirmed COVID-19, which presented with acute onset of diplopia and strabismus of the left eye that occurred 3 days after the start of general symptoms. The patient had no significant medical history. Based on detailed ophthalmic and neurological examination, acute painless incomplete palsy of the third cranial nerve was suspected. Oculo-cerebral magnetic resonance angiography was unremarkable. Blood tests revealed mild normocytic regenerative anemia. According to the Moroccan recommendations, chloroquine and azithromycin were started. After what, a quick improvement of exotropia and diplopia was observed, and complete recovery was obtained by the sixth day of treatment. No adverse effects of the treatment were noted. CONCLUSIONS Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) can cause neurological complications such as cranial nerve palsy. The pathological mechanism remains unclear. Full recovery of the ocular motricity is possible, and prognosis depends on the severity of the respiratory illness.

Scabies complicated by necrotizing lymphocytic vasculitis in an infant.

Scabies is very common among children. It is often a harmless infectious disease, responding well to antiparasitic medication. Nevertheless, severe forms can occur in immunocompromised populations like newborns and infants. We report a unique case of scabies in a three-months-old infant, complicated by generalized cutaneous lymphocytic vasculitis and unilateral acral necroses.

Laboratory abnormalities in children with novel Coronavirus Disease 2019.

The novel Coronavirus disease 2019 continues to be a worldwide pandemic. Yet, little is still known about the biological features of this emergent infection in children. In this prospective study, we collected 68 children infected with SARS-COV-2 from March 2020 to May 2020, in Marrakesh, Morocco. No severe cases were observed in this cohort, and 66% of the patients were asymptomatic. The main laboratory abnormalities were hematological, as we found Leucopoenia in 4.4% of the cases, hyperleukocytosis in 1.6%. Neutropenia was found in 5 patients (7%) and only 2 cases (3%) had Lymphopenia. The inflammation and coagulation biomarkers were normal in the majority of the cases, as for liver and kidney function. Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) serum levels were elevated in 8 cases (11.67%). The COVID-19 in children seems to have mild course and better outcome than in adults, which impacts the laboratory findings in this category. More studies must be conducted to learn more about the laboratory abnormalities in pediatric COVID-19.

Hepatitis A Virus Infection Associated with Cryoglobulinemic Vasculitis.

Atypical symptoms, especially immune complex disorders, are uncommonly reported with hepatitis A virus (HAV) infection. We report an 8-year-old child who contracted HAV infection complicated by cryoglobulinemic vasculitis, and responded well to oral steroids. HAV infection may be considered in the etiology of cryoglobulinemia in children.