Possibilities of neural network analysis in determining the severity form of new coronavirus infection in school-age children

Abstract

Coronavirus infection in children is milder than in adults, nevertheless the true reason of pathogenesis is still uncertain. There has been an increasing interest to possible connection between the severity of the disease and biomarkers including chemokines. Study objective. To study the possibilities of neural network analysis in early diagnostics of severity form of new coronavirus infection in school-age children depending on the plasma level of chemokines. Materials and methods. The concentration of 10 chemokines was quantified using multiplex analysis on a flow cytometer in 98 blood serum samples (main group) of school-age children (13 [10; 14] years old) divided into subgroups: first – 16 children with asymptomatic form of COVID-19, second – 54 children with mild form and third – 28 patients with moderate form of the disease. There was a group of 93 healthy children (13 [10; 15] years old) who were taken before COVID-19 pandemic. Results. Nine chemokines have shown statistically significant differences in serum concentration between school-age children with COVID-19 and the control group: CCL11 (Eotaxin), CCL5 (RANTES), CCL3 (MIP-1α), CCL4 (MIP-1β), CCL20 (MIP-3α), CCL17 (TARC), CXCL11 (I-TAC), CXCL5 (ENA-78), CXCL1 (GROα). There was no statistically significant difference in CXCL9 (MIG) levels between study groups. As a result of the study, a neural network was created based on a comprehensive assessment of the plasma levels CCL11 (Eotaxin), CCL5 (RANTES), CCL3 (MIP-1α), CCL4 (MIP-1β), CCL20 (MIP-3α), CCL17 (TARC), CXCL11 (I-TAC), CXCL5 (ENA-78), CXCL1 (GROα) that allowed to determine the severity form of COVID-19 in school-age children at the time of admission to the hospital. Conclusion. Plasma levels measurement of CCL11 (Eotaxin), CCL5 (RANTES), CCL3 (MIP-1α), CCL4 (MIP-1β), CCL20 (MIP-3α), CCL17 (TARC), CXCL11 (I-TAC), CXCL5 (ENA-78), CXCL1 (GROα) can be useful in diagnostics of severity form of new coronavirus infection in school-age children and further determining the treatment strategy.