Pregnant women who become infected[/B] with coronavirus are approximately 40% more likely to experience severe complications in their pregnancy, than those who are not infected, according to a new US scientific study that highlights the importance of vaccinating pregnant women against Covid-19. Moreover, in addition to pregnancy complications, it is already known that pregnant women are at risk of more severe symptoms of Covid-19 itself if they become infected with coronavirus.
The researchers, led by University of Utah associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology Tori Metz, who published the paper in the Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA), analyzed data on 14,104 women admitted to 17 U.S. medical centers. Of these, 2,350 had been diagnosed positive for coronavirus during pregnancy. Over 13% of them developed complications compared to 9% of those without coronavirus, and all maternal deaths (a total of five) occurred in pregnant women with coronavirus.
Compared to those with mild to no symptoms of Covid-19, pregnant women with moderate or severe symptoms of the infection were three times more likely (26% vs. 9%) to subsequently develop severe pregnancy complications such as eclampsia, severe hypertension, bleeding, kidney failure, organ damage, sepsis, endometritis, etc. Pregnant women with moderate to severe Coviid-19 symptoms had an even significantly higher risk (45% vs 32%) of having a caesarean delivery, which was not the case for those asymptomatic with coronavirus and those with only mild symptoms.
Coronavirus infection also significantly increased the risk of preterm delivery (27% vs. 14%) and neonatal intensive care unit admission, as well as miscarriage or stillbirth (3.5% vs. 1.8%). Obese pregnant women (with a body mass index above 30) had the highest risk if they were infected with coronavirus.
The researchers concluded that the severity of Covid-19 symptoms is a key indicator for predicting the increased risk of complications during pregnancy. We already knew that pregnant women face a higher risk for complications of Covid-19 itself. Our study is among the first to show that coronavirus infection may increase the risk of serious pregnancy-related complications. That's why we need to make sure pregnant women are vaccinated," said Dr. Metz.
The study also found that only one in 100 (1.2%) babies were diagnosed with coronavirus after birth and by the time they left the delivery room.
A second American study, led by Dr. Andrea Edlow of Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, published in the same medical journal, found that at six months of age, babies born to mothers who had been fully vaccinated against Covid-19 (with two doses of mRNA vaccine) during pregnancy had a much higher proportion (57%) of IgG antibodies against the coronavirus in their blood compared to unvaccinated mothers (only 8%) who had been infected with the virus while pregnant.
It is not yet clear how high levels of antibodies are needed to protect a baby from Covid-19 infection, and it is also known that antibodies are not the body's only defense mechanism.
Source: Proto Thema
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