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Review
. 2021 May 21:9:673322.
doi: 10.3389/fped.2021.673322. eCollection 2021.

Pediatric Pulmonary Function Testing in COVID-19 Pandemic and Beyond. A Position Statement From the Hellenic Pediatric Respiratory Society

Sotirios Fouzas  1 , Dimos Gidaris  2 , Nikolaos Karantaglis  3 , Harry Opsimos  4 , Emmanouil I Alexopoulos  5 , Konstantinos Douros  6 , Fotios Kirvassilis  3 , Emmanouil Paraskakis  7 , Michael B Anthracopoulos  1 , Markos Marangos  8 , Ioannis Tsanakas  3 ; Hellenic Pediatric Respiratory Society
Affiliations
Review

Pediatric Pulmonary Function Testing in COVID-19 Pandemic and Beyond. A Position Statement From the Hellenic Pediatric Respiratory Society

Sotirios Fouzas et al. Front Pediatr. .

Abstract

As the COVID-19 pandemic is still evolving, guidelines on pulmonary function testing that may dynamically adapt to sudden epidemiologic changes are required. This paper presents the recommendations of the Hellenic Pediatric Respiratory Society (HPRS) on pulmonary function testing in children and adolescents during the COVID-19 era. Following an extensive review of the relevant literature, we recommend that pulmonary function tests should be carried out after careful evaluation of the epidemiologic load, structured clinical screening of all candidates, and application of special protective measures to minimize the risk of viral cross infection. These principles have been integrated into a dynamic action plan that may readily adapt to the phase of the pandemic.

Keywords: COVID-19; children; lung function testing; recommendation; spirometry.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Recommendation of the Hellenic Pediatric Respiratory Society regarding pulmonary function testing in children and adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. *Available online at: https://ourworldindata.org/covid-government-stringency-index#containment-and-health-index. PFTs, pulmonary function tests; CDC, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; WHO, World Health Organization; FeNO, fraction of expired NO; CPET, cardiopulmonary exercise testing; SI, stringency index.
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