Women pregnant with Covid-19 DO provide protective antibodies to their children

by

Women pregnant with Covid-19 can give protective antibodies against their child’s coronavirus, study finds

  • Researchers in the United States have studied more than 1,700 samples of mother’s and baby’s blood
  • Eighty-three of these mothers had coronavirus antibodies in their system
  • 72 (8%) of babies born to infected mothers also had Covid antibodies

By Joe Pinkstone For Mailonline and Xantha Leatham for the Daily Mail

Published: | Updated:

A new study suggests that pregnant women who have been infected with coronavirus may offer protective antibodies to their unborn baby.

Researchers in Philadelphia have found that Covid antibodies can pass into the placenta of the unborn baby if the mother catches the virus during pregnancy.

The findings are a good sign for concerned future parents, but researchers say they are unable to say with certainty that the newborn of an infected mother is “absolutely safe” from Covid-19 because science is still evolving.

Scroll down for the video

A new study suggests that pregnant women who have been infected with coronavirus may give their babies protective antibodies

A new study suggests that pregnant women who have been infected with coronavirus may give their babies protective antibodies

Severe Covid-19 pregnant women are more likely to have serious complications at birth

Pregnant women with a severe case of Covid-19 have an increased risk of dangerous complications at birth, according to a US study.

This includes the need for a cesarean section, heavy bleeding after birth, high blood pressure and a premature birth.

Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also found that women who are pregnant with severe Covid-19 are more likely to die compared to expectant mothers who have only a mild case of coronavirus infection.

For women who give birth while struggling with a moderate case of coronavirus, there is no increased risk of death or complications at birth.

CDC research found a correlation between mortality and pregnancy only in the worst cases.

The study looked for antibodies in the mother’s blood samples, as well as blood from the umbilical cord – from the placenta and from the attached umbilical cord – immediately after labor.

The blood in the umbilical cord is an exact reflection of the newborn’s blood at birth.

Eighty-three of the 1,471 women in the study, which took place between April 9 and August 8 last year, tested positive for Covid-19, and antibodies were found in the umbilical cord blood of 72 (87%). ) among their babies.

Eleven infants born to Covid-positive mothers who did not have antibodies tested negative for the virus.

“In this cohort study, maternal antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 were transferred across the placenta after asymptomatic and symptomatic infection during pregnancy,” the researchers write in their study, published in JAMA Pediatrics.

The researchers found that the baby inherited more antibodies if the mother had a large number of antibodies, while a mother with only a small number of immune cells would transmit less to her baby.

The corresponding author, Dr. Karen Puopolo, stated: “This finding must be placed in the context of the fact that SARS-CoV-2 is a new virus.

Therefore, the time between exposure to the maternal virus and the birth of the newborn was never more than three to four months in our study, and in most cases the time was shorter than that.

But there must also be enough time between the maternal infection and the birth for the mother to produce the type of antibodies that cross the placenta and for this crossing to take place.

We found that if the time between exposure to the maternal virus and birth was at least two to three weeks, then we could detect antibodies in the newborn.

Philadelphia researchers found that Covid antibodies can pass into the placenta of the unborn baby if the mother catches the virus during pregnancy (stock)

Philadelphia researchers found that Covid antibodies can pass into the placenta of the unborn baby if the mother catches the virus during pregnancy (stock)

The researchers said their findings support the potential of maternal-derived antibodies to provide protection for their newborns against coronavirus infections.

Dr. Puopolo said: “Our results mean that maternal antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 can cross the placenta effectively, and therefore our results demonstrate the potential for these maternal-derived antibodies to provide neonatal protection against human infection. SARS-CoV-2.

“Nothing in our work should change the way we currently care for pregnant women and their newborns. Our work cannot tell a woman that her newborn is absolutely safe from COVID-19.

“It remains to be seen what levels and types of antibodies protect newborns from SARS-CoV-2 infection and how long these antibodies can last in the newborn’s circulation.”

Pregnant women who contract Covid-19 in the third trimester are unlikely to pass it on to unborn babies

Pregnant women who get the coronavirus do not pass it on to unborn babies, according to a study.

Researchers in the United States tracked 64 women who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, between April 2 and June 13.

None of the children tested positive for Covid-19 after birth and no placental coronavirus was detected.

While Harvard academics warn that the small sample size makes it impossible to rule out the fact that some pregnant women could transmit the virus to their children, they show that natural pregnancy protection removes the virus, they say.

Waiting mothers were in the third trimester and had the virus in their lungs, nose and throat, but not in their bloodstream or placenta.

.Source