Investigation of Spirometry Indicators in Children Aged 6 to 14 Years Recovered from COVID-19

Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate spirometry indicators in children aged 6 to 14 years who had recovered from COVID-19 in Akbar Hospital, Mashhad, Iran. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study conducted on 50 (25 PCR-positive and 25 PCR-negative) children who were admitted to Akbar hospital with the diagnosis of COVID-19 from March 2021 to March 2023. The diagnosis was confirmed by PCR test and CT scan, and the patients underwent spirometry twice in two time periods (the first 3 months after recovery and the second 3 months after recovery). The collected data were then analyzed using SPSS software ver. 21. Results: The mean age of children in the PCR-negative and PCR-positive groups was 7.88 ± 1.53 and 10.12 ± 2.52 years, respectively (P = 0.01). The mean FEF25.75 was significantly higher in the PCR-negative group (P = 0.01), whereas CRP was significantly higher in the PCR-positive group (P = 0.01). In the PCR-positive group, the patients underwent spirometry again in the second 3 months after recovery from COVID-19, and the results showed that the mean forced expiratory volume (FEV) 1 (P = 0.01), forced vital capacity (FVC) (P = 0.01), and FEV1/FVC ratio (P = 0.01) of the patients in the second 3 months after recovery from COVID-19 was significantly reduced compared to the first 3 months after recovery. CT scans of the patients also showed that ground-glass opacities (GGO) consolidation (P = 0.01) and pleural thickening (P = 0.02) were significantly higher in the PCR-positive group. Conclusions: According to the conclusive findings of this study, the inflammatory response triggered by COVID-19 could persist in certain children, potentially impacting the peripheral airways as a result.