Covid19 and pregnancy

Covid19 and pregnancy: As per ICMR Guidelines Pregnant women do not appear more likely to contract the infection than the general population. However, pregnancy itself alters the body’s immune system and response to viral infections in general, which can occasionally be related to more severe symptoms and this will be the same for COVID-19. Reported cases of COVID-19 pneumonia in pregnancy are milder and with good recovery.Pregnant women with heart disease are at highest risk (congenital or acquired). In other types of coronavirus infection (SARS, MERS), the risks to the mother appear to increase in particular during the last trimester of pregnancy. There are case reports of preterm birth in women with COVID-19 but it is unclear whether the preterm birth was always iatrogenic, or whether some were spontaneous.The coronavirus epidemic increases the risk of perinatal anxiety and depression, as well as domestic violence. It is critically important that support for women and families is strengthened as far as possible; that women are asked about mental health at every contact. A small study of nine pregnant women in Wuhan, China, with confirmed COVID-19 found no evidence of the virus in their breast milk, cord blood or amniotic fluid. According to WHO, pregnant women do not appear to be at higher risk of severe disease. Furthermore, WHO reports that currently there is no known difference between the clinical manifestations of COVID-19 in pregnant and non-pregnant women of reproductive age ACOG is advising caution based on the impact of other respiratory illnesses (including influenza/ SARS outbreak of 2002–2003), stating that “pregnant women should be considered an at-risk population for COVID-19.

Covid19 and pregnancy from Dr Shivani Sachdev Gour