Respiratory diseases in childhood in times of COVID-19

Abstract

Acute respiratory diseases are a set of affections of the respiratory system where the most vulnerable are children under 5 years of age, the most frequently associated etiological agents are viruses, the WHO 2020 declared COVID-19 as a global pandemic, also affecting the pediatric population. The article’s objective is to identify the impact of these respiratory diseases on the current situation due to COVID-19. A descriptive study was carried out by conducting a manual review of files related to respiratory diseases in first-level healthcare, where the population had an age range of 1 month to less than 5 years from January 1, 2020, to September 30, 2021. 228 files were evaluated, during the study it was possible to determine the impact of the acute respiratory infections through the elaboration of endemics corridors and their interpretation; the respiratory diseases presented in different clinical forms, being the common cold and the bronchiolitis, the main ones diagnosed whit a 45 % and 36 % respectively. The implementation of biosafety measures and their promotion influences the decrease in the spread and duration of these diseases, the clinical manifestation of COVID-19 and the similarity it shares with that of acute respiratory diseases generate confusion when making a proper diagnosis, the immaturity of the immune system contributes to recurrent infections, being viruses the main cause.