Quick Takes
- Returning to sports participation after a COVID infection will be a significant question posed to pediatric providers in the coming months
- The approach to sports participation clearance in pediatric patients should differ from the approach in adult patients
- Most pediatric patients will be able to be easily cleared for participation without extensive cardiac testing, but pediatric providers should ensure patients have fully recovered and have no evidence of myocardial injury
Typically, during the summer months, pediatricians and family physicians are inundated with requests for sports clearance physicals. This year, as schools and sports reopen, a new question will need to be addressed at these appointments: is it safe for my child to resume physical activity and sports after a COVID-19 infection?
There have been eloquent editorials written on the return-to-play topic from an adult cardiologist’s perspective1-3 but no statements or articles addressing return to play from a pediatric cardiologist’s perspective…
