Asian Reporter
web extra, August 12, 2020
Can a pregnant woman spread the coronavirus to her fetus?
By The Associated Press
Can a pregnant woman spread the coronavirus to her fetus?
It’s possible, but it seems to be relatively rare and scientists think
they know why that is.
Many viruses can cross the placenta and infect a fetus in the womb, and
evidence has been growing that the coronavirus sometimes can too.
Researchers in Italy studied 31 women with COVID-19 who delivered babies
in March and April and found signs of the virus in several samples of
umbilical cord blood, the placenta, and, in one case, breast milk. But this
sort of testing can just detect bits of genetic material — it doesn’t mean
there is virus capable of causing infection in those places.
In one case, there was strong evidence suggesting the newborn had the
virus at birth because signs of it were found in umbilical cord blood and in
the placenta. In another, a newborn had certain coronavirus antibodies that
are unable to cross the placenta, so they could not have come from the
mother.
A report from France (www.nature.com/articles/s41467-020-17436-6)
gave even stronger evidence of in-the-womb infection, and that newborn was
very ill at birth.
Meanwhile, research led by the National Institutes of Health (https://elifesciences.org/articles/58716)
gives a possible reason for why fetuses aren’t infected more often: cells in
the placenta rarely make the two tools that the coronavirus typically uses
to gain entry. In contrast, they found plenty of what Zika and another type
of virus use.
Most research so far has been on women who were in late stages of
pregnancy when they got the virus; more research is needed on what happens
if infection occurs earlier in pregnancy.
The advice to pregnant women remains the same: wear a mask in public,
wash hands often, and stay at least 6 feet away from others to avoid
infection.
The Associated Press is answering questions about the
coronavirus in this series. Submit questions to <FactCheck@AP.org>.
Illustration by Peter Hamlin.
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