SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Pregnant women with COVID-19 will not get sicker than the wider population, according to a study in Singapore published on Friday, which also found that babies born to COVID have antibodies maternal infectious against the novel coronavirus.
The small study of 16 women found no evidence of maternal-infant virus transmission, offering insights into a range of COVID-19 infection that is not yet globally understood.
The World Health Organization says that some respiratory diseases can adversely affect pregnant women, and it is unknown whether mothers with COVID-19 can pass the virus on to their babies during pregnancy. or when born.
“The results of the study were promising,” the Singapore Obstetrics and Gynecology Research Network said in a statement.
“This shows that the incidence and severity of COVID-19 among pregnant women is similar to general population trends.”
The study reported that most participants were slightly infected, while older, overweight women had more severe reactions.
None of the women died and all were fully healed. Two women lost their babies, which researchers said in one case may be related to virus complications.
Five women had delivered by the time the study was published, and all of their babies had antibodies without being infected with the virus, although the researchers said it is not yet clear what level of protection which could offer this.
Further research was needed to see if the antibodies decay as the babies grow, the researchers said.
The number of antibodies in the infants varied and was higher among those whose mothers were infected closer to the time of delivery, the researchers said.
Doctors in China have reported the discovery and decline over time of COVID-19 antibodies in babies born to women with coronavirus infection, according to an article published in October in the journal Infectious Diseases emerge.
Reciting with Chen Lin and John Geddie; Edited by Michael Perry and Karishma Singh