COVID Infection During Pregnancy Raises Risk Of Death

A recent study has revealed that COVID-19 infections during pregnancy raises a woman’s risk of death by sevenfold and significantly elevates her odds of needing intensive care.

Getting the virus during pregnancy also ups the likelihood of pneumonia, according to researchers at George Washington University in Washington, D.C.

“This study provides the most comprehensive evidence to date suggesting that COVID-19 is a threat during pregnancy,” said lead author Emily Smith, an assistant professor of global health at the GW Milken Institute School of Public Health.

“Our findings underscore the importance of COVID-19 vaccination for all women of childbearing age,” she said in a university news release.

Smith and her colleagues pooled patient data from 12 studies conducted in 12 countries, including the United States. These studies involved more than 13,000 pregnant women.

Compared to uninfected pregnant women, moms-to-be with COVID-19 infections not only had a seven times higher risk of dying during pregnancy or childbirth but were at a three times greater risk of needing ICU admission.

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They had about 15 times higher risk of needing ventilator treatment and about 23 times higher risk of developing pneumonia, which is a potentially life-threatening complication of COVID.

Pregnant women with COVID also had a five times higher risk of blood clots that can cause pain, swelling, or other life-threatening complications.

The babies born to women who were infected with COVID also developed problems. They were almost twice as likely to be admitted to a neonatal ICU after birth and had higher odds of preterm birth.

Preterm babies are at high risk of having lifelong health problems, Smith said, including delays in early childhood cognitive development.

More than 80 countries still do not recommend that all pregnant and lactating women get the COVID vaccine, Smith said.

This meta-analysis provides public health officials and the public with clear, consistent, and compelling findings, she said.

“This study shows the risk of getting COVID-19 for both mother and baby. All countries, including the United States, should make access to COVID vaccines an urgent priority in order to save lives and prevent health problems.”