The evolving relationship between COVID-19 and serious bacterial infection evaluation in febrile neonates

Abstract

Aim: The COVID-19 omicron variant surge highlighted the evolving impact of COVID-19. Febrile infants <60 days old are high risk for serious bacterial infections (SBI). This study evaluated the rate of SBI based on COVID-19 infection.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective chart review at an urban, academic paediatric emergency department. The study enrolled infants 60 days old or less with documented fever. The primary outcome was SBI diagnosed by blood, urine, and/or cerebrospinal fluid cultures. We compared the rate of SBI between COVID-19 groups with an omicron variant and 29- to 60-day-old subgroup analyses.

Results: Two hundred and thirty-three (233) infants meet the criteria. The incidence of SBI was 18.7% in the COVID-19 negative and 1.7% in the COVID-19-positive group which is statistically significant (p < 0.001). Omicron subgroup analysis did not achieve statistical significance (p = 0.62) while COVID-19-positive infants 29-60 days old had a statistically significant lower rate of SBI (p = 0.006).

Conclusion: The omicron variant surge provided an additional understanding of the impact of COVID-19 on these high-risk infants. These results can lead to decreased invasive testing and exposure to antibiotics as well as examine the utility of viral testing for risk stratification.

Keywords: COVID-19; Febrile neonates; serious bacterial infection.