Abstract

Recently, a novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) has emerged, rapidly spreading and severely straining the capacity of the global health community. First described in Wuhan, China, the virus has spread to 185 countries, showing little signs of eradication. There does not exist a medical treatment regimen or a vaccine to address COVID 19 definitively. Many nations are employing combinations of containment and mitigation strategies, where early diagnosis of COVID-19 is vital in controlling illness progression and limiting viral spread within the population. Thus, rapid and accurate methods of early detection are vital to contain COVID-19 and prevent further spread in future.

Quantitative real‐time reverse transcriptase‐polymerase chain reaction (rRT‐PCR) assay has routinely been used for the detection of viruses from respiratory secretions and diagnostics of COVID‐19. Limited by the high false negative rates and kit supply, RT-PCR cannot give a satisfied performance for diagnosing suspicious patients. It is urgent to rapidly optimize the quality of testing kit and standard operating procedure for the best testing of SARS‐CoV‐2 infection.

The criteria for diagnosis of COVID-19 in children were formulated based on the diagnosis of adult patients, combined with the characteristics of epidemiology and clinical manifestations of children. Different diagnostic methods are needed due to the frequency of asymptomatic infection in children.

In this review, molecular tests, serological methods, genomic sequencing and viral culture of covid-19 disease in children were summarized.