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Review
. 2022 Jun 6;93(S3):e2022195.
doi: 10.23750/abm.v93iS3.13075.

Obesity and COVID-19 in children and adolescents: a double pandemic

Ilaria Brambilla  1 , Francesco Delle Cave  2 , Carmen Guarracino  3 , Maria De Filippo  4 , Martina Votto  5 , Amelia Licari  6 , Carmelo Pistone  7 , Enrico Tondina  8
Affiliations
Review

Obesity and COVID-19 in children and adolescents: a double pandemic

Ilaria Brambilla et al. Acta Biomed. .

Abstract

Background and aim of the study: The high prevalence of obesity and obesity-related comorbidities has reached pandemic proportions, particularly in Western countries. It has been recently recognized as a significant risk factor in severe cases of COVID-19 in children and adolescents. Here, we summarize the existing knowledge regarding the pathophysiology of COVID-19 and consider how its various components may be exacerbated by the presence of obesity to investigate the impact of obesity on disease severity among patients with COVID-19 and collaborate for better clinical care of these patients.

Methods: The literature search was conducted from March 2020 to January 2022. A review of articles was performed via the online database PubMed, combining the terms "obesity," "weight gain," "COVID-19", "children."

Results: Excessive adipose tissue, insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, hypertension, high levels of proinflammatory cytokines are factors that compromise the functioning of organs and systems in obese patients. In obese patients with COVID-19 these changes can increase the risk of death, need for ventilatory assistance, risk of thromboembolism, and perpetuation of inflammatory response.

Conclusions: Obesity increases the risk for hospitalization, intensive care admission, mechanic ventilation requirement, and death among children and adolescents with COVID-19. These findings emphasize the need for effective actions by health professionals to increase awareness of the risks resulting from obesity and how these are heightened in the current global pandemic.

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Conflict of interest statement

Authors declare that they do not have any commercial associations (e.g., consultancies, stock ownership, equity interest, patent/licensing arrangement, etc.) that might pose a conflict of interest in connection with the submitted article

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Relationships between obesity and COVID-19 and their potential effects on patient’s health.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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