Differences in clinical presentation, severity, and treatment of COVID-19 among individuals with Down syndrome from India and high-income countries: Data from the Trisomy 21 Research Society survey

Halder Pinku, Cytogenetics and Genomics Research Unit, Department of Zoology, University of Calcutta, Kolkata, West Bengal, India.
Anke Hüls, Department of Epidemiology, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
Patrick T. Feany, Department of Epidemiology, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
Nicole Baumer, Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.Follow
Mara Dierssen, Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Barcelona, Spain.
Stefania Bargagna, Fondazione Stella Maris IRCCS, Pisa, Italy.Follow
Alberto Cs Costa, Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, and Department of Macromolecular. Science and Engineering, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA.Follow
Brian A. Chicoine, Advocate Aurora HealthFollow
Anne-Sophie Rebillat, Institut Jérôme Lejeune, Paris, France.
Giuseppina Sgandurra, Cytogenetics and Genomics Research Unit, Department of Zoology, University of Calcutta, Kolkata, West Bengal, India.
Diletta Valentini, Pediatric Unit, Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital, IRCCS, Rome, Italy.
R Tilman Rohrer, Division of Pediatric Endocrinology, Saarland University Medical Center, Homburg/Saar, Germany.
Johannes Levin, Department of Neurology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany.
Monica Lakhanpaul, Department of Population Policy and Practice, UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College London, UK.
Angelo Carfì, Geriatric Department, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS, Rome, Italy.
Stephanie L. Sherman, Department of Human Genetics, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
Andre Strydom, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience, Department of Forensic and Neuro-developmental Sciences, King's College London, London, UK.
Sujay Ghosh, Cytogenetics and Genomics Research Unit, Department of Zoology, University of Calcutta, Kolkata, West Bengal, India.

Affiliations

Advocate Medical Group Adult Down Syndrome Center

Abstract

Background: People with Down syndrome (DS) are one of the highest risk groups for mortality associated with COVID-19, but outcomes may differ across countries due to different co-morbidity profiles, exposures, and societal practices, which could have implications for disease management. This study is designed to identify differences in clinical presentation, severity, and treatment of COVID-19 between India and several high-income countries (HICs).

Methods: We used data from an international survey to examine the differences in disease manifestation and management for COVID-19 patients with DS from India vs HIC. De-identified survey data collected from April 2020 to August 2021 were analysed.

Results: COVID-19 patients with DS from India were on average nine years younger than those from HICs. Comorbidities associated with a higher risk for severe COVID-19 were more frequent among the patients from India than from HICs. Hospitalizations were more frequent among patients from India as were COVID-19-related medical complications. Treatment strategies differed between India and HICs, with more frequent use of antibiotics in India. The average severity score of 3.31 was recorded for Indian DS in contrast to 2.3 for European and 2.04 for US cases.

Conclusions: Presentation and outcomes of COVID-19 among individuals with DS were more severe for patients from India than for those from HIC. Global efforts should especially target vaccination campaigns and other risk-reducing interventions for individuals with DS from low-income countries.

Type

Article

PubMed ID

35932238

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