Long COVID: Assessment of Neuropsychiatric Symptoms in Children and Adolescents - A Clinical Data Analysis

Abstract

Abstract: COVID-19 infections in adults often result in medical, neuropsychiatric, and unspecific symp-toms, called Long COVID, and the premorbid functional status cannot be achieved. Regarding the course in children and adolescents, however, reliable data are not yet available. Objective: 380 children and adolescents/young adults aged between 6 and 21 years, being treated for various psychiatric diseases in an outpatient clinical service, were examined for COVID-19 infections and Long COVID symptoms following a structured protocol. Results: Three patients had COVID-19; one patient had symptoms of Long COVID in his medical histo-ry, but they could not be objectivized in an in-depth neuropsychiatric and neuropsychological assessment. Conclusions: Long COVID seems to occur rarely in children and adolescents. Objectivizing the symptoms is a difficult task that requires various diagnostic considerations.