New research identifies core symptoms of Long Covid in children and young people

We are delighted to share this critical new research from Kings College London in partnership with the WHO and Long Covid Kids has identified core symptoms of Long Covid in children and young people.

Dr Daniel Munblit, a Reader in Paediatrics from King’s and the study’s senior author said:

“By assessing and understanding which outcomes are most critical for children and young people affected by Long-COVID, further research and clinical practice taking place worldwide will be able to assess and report these agreed outcomes in a harmonised fashion. This means that reporting on research will be more uniform, and the translation of research to practice should be simpler.”

Sammie McFarland, Long Covid Kids Founder and Helen Goss Scottish Lead said:

"Long Covid imposes a significant burden on families, children, and healthcare systems. We are delighted to have collaborated on this crucial research, which will provide a consistent framework for studying Long Covid in children and young people, thereby guiding future research endeavours and clinical practices worldwide."

This study, led by researchers from King’s, aimed to identify a core outcome set (COS) and associated core outcome measurement set (COMS) for evaluating Long Covid in children and young people. These outcomes are then recommended for use in any future research and clinical practice globally, accelerating the understanding and development of evidence-based treatments for Long Covid. Having a globally recognised measurement set also ensures consistency of what is being recorded, enabling easier collation and comparison of results across clinical trials and other studies informing clinical guidelines.

The final core outcomes were agreed as:

• Fatigue or exhaustion

• Gastrointestinal symptoms 

• Neurocognitive functioning

• Physical functioning

• Cardiovascular symptoms

•  Post-exertional malaise

• Work/occupational and study changes     

The study then identified the ways in which Long Covid and its symptoms and impacts have been measured in children and young people to date, selecting those that could be used globally, including low-resource settings. Results were summarised and presented to an international group of experts and patients to reach, where possible, an agreement on the best measurement instrument (or instruments) to measure core outcomes. Appropriate instruments were agreed upon for four outcomes (fatigue or exhaustion, gastrointestinal symptoms, neurocognitive functioning, physical functioning), with researchers continuing to work on achieving a consensus on the best instruments to measure the remaining three core outcomes.

Please read the full article and research here

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