Highlights The serum IL-6 level is the best marker for the severity of COVID-19 of those tested. IL-6 values greater than 35 pg/mL can differentiate between mild and severe COVID-19. High serum IL-6 values are associated with increased risk of mortality and ICU admission.

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Introduction Children born at term who live at high altitude (HA) (≥ 2500 m) have different respiratory patterns from those that live at sea level. It is essential to determine these patterns in preterm children due to their high risk of Sleep Apnea-Hypopnea Syndrome (SAHS). The evolution of the apnea hypopnea index (AHI), desaturation index (ODI), and oxygen saturation (SpO2) is unknown in this group at HA. The objective was to characterize the respiratory patterns during sleep of preterm children living at HA and compare it with those of healthy children born at term. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study in Bogotá, Colombia (altitude: 2640 m). We included 302 children, 127 were preterm with an average of gestational age of 31weeks (SD: 2.9) and an average weight at birth of 1600 g (SD: 594) and 175 healthy full-term infants. Three groups were defined according to age: Group I: 3–4 months, Group II: 6–7 months,, Group III: 10–18 months. All children underwent nocturnal polysomnogram to evaluate their respiratory variables: AHI, average and minimum SpO2, ODI, and T90 during sleep and analyzed the data according to the parameters of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine Results 302 polysomnograms were performed, 54.3% were girls and were distributed by groups as follows: Group I:105 patients (34.8%), 16 preterm, Group II: 107 patients (35.4%), 46 preterm and Group III: 90 patients (29.8%), 65 preterm. We observed higher respiratory parameters within each age strata in premature infants compared to children born at term. Preterm infants had higher ODI, AHI, obstructive apnea hypopnea index (O-AHI), and Central Apnea hypopnea index (C-AHI). Although the effect decreases over time, we found a significant difference in the first age group. There was a high persistence index in children with a history of preterm birth living at high altitude. We also found a significant decrease in AHI, ODI across time in healthy and preterm children p<0.01 Conclusion Premature children living at HA persist with higher ODI and AHI compared to children of similar ages born at term. The high desaturation index indicates the presence of intermittent hypoxia that persists in these children over time Support (if any):

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