Review of Chest Pain in Children after COVID-19 Pandemic in Albaha, Saudi Arabia

Introduction: Although chest pain in children induces anxiety among their parents and caregivers, various studies have reported that the majority of cases in children are benign and not related to cardiac disorders. Methodology and objectives: This is retrospective cohort file review study between January 2022 and December 2023, included all admitted pediatric patients due to chest pain. The study aimed to review the clinical profile and etiology of chest pain after the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in Albaha, Saudi Arabia. Results: We noted some pre- versus post-pandemic differences in the etiology and prevalence of chest pain. Idiopathic causes were the most common, but the incidence decreased from 56% pre- to 40.5% post-pandemic (p=0.20). Respiratory causes increased from 13% pre- to 21.4% post-pandemic (p=0.14) and became more common than musculoskeletal causes (18.6%; p=0.23). Gastrointestinal causes were slightly increased from 4% pre- to 8.4% post-pandemic (p=0.17). A slight uptick in psychogenic causes was observed from 4% pre- to 7.4% post-pandemic (p=0.16), and reported more in female patients. In contrast, cardiac causes decreased from 7% pre- to 3.7% post-pandemic (p=0.09). Conclusion: This study confirmed that pediatric chest pain has a benign origin in most cases. After the COVID-19 pandemic, mild differences in etiology and prevalence were noted, while psychogenic causes were slightly elevated.