Outcomes of infants born to mothers with SARS-CoV-2 infection in a tertiary hospital

ABSTRACT

Introduction@#Pregnant women are a susceptible population to emerging infections. Recent published data have shown evidence of possible transplacental transmission of SARS-CoV-2. However, at present there are not enough data to determine its effect on the fetus. This study aims to determine the outcomes of infants born to mothers with SARS-CoV-2 infection. @*Methods@#A retrospective descriptive institution-based study using data collected from medical records of infants born to confirmed COVID-19 mothers delivered from April to June 2020. @*Results@#Of the 47 neonates, none of them were positive for SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR. Majority were born full-term, mean gestational age of 37 weeks, weight of 2867 grams, appropriate for gestational age, good APGAR score, and delivered through cesarean section. Symptomatic neonates (27.7%) had tachypnea and vomiting as the most common manifestation, 13.3% had lymphopenia while pneumonia was the predominant radiologic finding. There was a significant association between the presence or absence of symptoms among mothers and neonates (p=0.037). @*Conclusion@#The neonatal outcome in this study was good with 98% survival at 2 weeks of life. There was note of 2.1% morbidity and mortality. Given that the clinical data in newborns are very limited and the possibility of a vertical transmission is still uncertain, it is crucial to closely monitor neonates with increased risk of COVID-19 infection.