A case is reported in which a pregnant mother is infected with the new corona and the baby's brain is damaged



Pregnant mothers infected with the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) are known to have an increased risk of premature birth, but cases of fetal infection with the new coronavirus are rare. However, two cases were reported in which brain damage, believed to be caused by the virus, was confirmed in babies born from mothers infected with the new coronavirus in late pregnancy.

Maternal SARS-CoV-2, Placental Changes and Brain Injury in 2 Neonates | Pediatrics | American Academy of Pediatrics

https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2022-058271



Case Study Shows COVID-19 Can Be Transmitted from Mother to Baby through Placenta, Causing Brain Injury - InventUM | University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
https://physician-news.umiamihealth.org/case-study-shows-covid-19-can-be-transmitted-from-mother-to-baby-through-placenta-causing-brain-injury/

In rare cases, COVID-19 infection in pregnancy can cause brain damage to fetuses | Live Science
https://www.livescience.com/in-rare-cases-covid-19-infection-in-pregnancy-can-cause-brain-damage-to-fetuses

If pregnant women are infected with the new coronavirus, it is known that the risk of pre-eclampsia and premature birth, which causes symptoms such as high blood pressure, increases. In addition, although rare, it has been confirmed that the fetus is infected with the new coronavirus in the uterus, but it is also known that the prognosis of the baby is good in most cases.

A baby infected with the new coronavirus is born in the uterus, and the mutation of the virus is also confirmed-GIGAZINE



However, two cases reported by researchers such as the University of Miami Health System confirmed that the fetus was infected with the new coronavirus through the mother's placenta, causing brain damage. Shahnaz Duara , professor of pediatrics at the University of Miami's Miller School of Medicine, said: 'While many women are affected by COVID-19 during pregnancy, it is clearly unusual to see such problems in an infant during delivery. I did.”

In the first reported case, a 21-year-old mother who was 27 weeks pregnant was taken to an intensive care unit with pneumonia and other symptoms and tested positive for the new coronavirus. After that, a boy was born by caesarean section at 32 weeks of gestation, but it seems that this boy immediately showed seizures and respiratory depression. The mother was negative for the new coronavirus in a test just before giving birth, and the boy was also negative for the new coronavirus in a test 24 hours after birth, but the boy also had antibodies to the new coronavirus and bleeding in the brain was confirmed. About.

The boy was discharged at 3 months of age, but suffered from seizure disorder and severe acquired microcephaly . After that, he was readmitted repeatedly due to growth failure and respiratory infection, and the boy died of an upper respiratory tract infection that developed at 13 months of age. A post-mortem autopsy revealed that the white matter in the brain was significantly reduced, and it was reported that traces of the protein of the new coronavirus were also confirmed throughout the brain.

In the second case, the mother tested positive for COVID-19 late in pregnancy and was asymptomatic but had an intra-amniotic infection . The mother was positive for the new coronavirus again at birth, and the girl born at 39 weeks of pregnancy had a seizure immediately after birth and had antibodies to the new coronavirus. The girl has acquired microcephaly and a significant neurodevelopmental disorder and is being cared for in hospice.



Investigation of the placentas of the mothers who appeared in two cases found novel coronavirus proteins along with signs of inflammation and anoxia. It was also found that the placenta had an extremely low level of a hormone called

human chorionic gonadotropin, which is important for fetal development, including brain development.

Professor Ali Saad , a neuropathologist at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, said, 'I was struck by the severity of the unexplained white matter loss in the fetal brain and the evidence of hypoxia and perfusion failure that was present in the cerebral cortex. 'We suspected that the novel coronavirus might have breached the placental barrier and damaged the central nervous system, but it had never been documented before.' .

The research team emphasizes that most cases of pregnant mothers infected with the new coronavirus do not seriously affect the fetus, and two cases are extremely rare. 'More research is needed to understand why these two babies had such tragic outcomes,' said lead author Merline Benny , a pediatrician. Then we can develop the most appropriate intervention method.'



in Science, Posted by log1h_ik