Researchers find no link between COVID-19 virus and development of asthma in children

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, many families worried about the long-term effects posed by the SARS-COV-2 virus. Now, researchers from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) found that a SARS-COV-2 infection likely does not increase the risk of asthma development in pediatric patients. The findings were published today in the journal Pediatrics.

This retrospective cohort study included more than 27,000 pediatric patients who received polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing for SARS-COV-2 between March 1, 2020, and February 28, 2021. Patients were followed over an 18-month period. The analysis found that testing positive for SARS-COV-2 had no significant effect on the likelihood of a new asthma diagnosis. However, children with known risk factors for developing pediatric asthma, such as race, food allergies, allergic rhinitis (or hay fever), and preterm birth – were more likely to associate with new SARS-COV-2 diagnoses.

---

https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article/doi/10.1542/peds.2023-064615/197089/COVID-19-and-Asthma-Onset-in-Children