Maternal, Perinatal, and Neonatal Outcomes of COVID-19 Severity in Pregnant Women: A Retrospective Study from Oman

Abstract

Objectives: To evaluate the effect of COVID-19 severity on maternal, perinatal, and neonatal outcomes in pregnant women infected with SARS-CoV-2. We also aimed to assess the effect of medical comorbidities on the severity of COVID-19. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted on women who became infected with SARS-CoV-2 during pregnancy and delivered at Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, Oman, from 1 March 2020 to 31 December 2021. Results: A total of 118 pregnant women with COVID-19 and their 118 newborns were included in the study. Mean maternal age was 32.0 years, with 60.2% of women infected in the third trimester. The majority of the participants had mild symptoms. Eleven (9.3%) women had moderate infection needing inpatient care. Six (5.1%) with severe infection were admitted to intensive care unit. The chronic diseases among the participants were hypothyroidism, obesity, sickle cell disease, epilepsy, and diabetes. The mean gestational age at delivery was 37.0 weeks with 20.9% of women delivering by cesarean section out of whom 37.5% had moderate-to-severe COVID-19. The most common complications associated with COVID-19 severity were preterm labor (p = 0.002), preeclampsia (p = 0.002), and intrauterine fetal death (p = 0.089). Of the total 118 newborns, 111 were singletons and six were twins. One fetus died and three singletons were lost to miscarriage. Placental histopathology conducted in 64 patients had no COVID-specific findings in most cases. Conclusions: Most pregnant women with COVID-19 infections had mild symptoms. The majority of women with moderate-to-severe infection were admitted for COVID-19 pneumonia. There was no direct effect of COVID-19 severity in neonatal outcomes or placental histopathology changes.

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