Covid CAN can spread from mothers to babies, study confirms

Women can pass Covid on to their babies, but a study has confirmed, the phenomenon is rare.

Researchers at the University of Birmingham estimate that about 2% of babies born to infected mothers test positive for the virus shortly after birth.

This can pass in the womb, during labor or delivery, or in the first few days of a baby’s life, they said.

Experts reviewed nearly 500 international studies involving 18,000 babies born to Covid-positive mothers during the pandemic.

Only 1.8 percent tested positive for the virus, highlighting the “miscarriage risk” of mothers contracting the virus.

But further analysis suggested that only a small fraction of those who caught the virus most likely contracted it in the womb.

They concluded that “infants are less likely to be contaminated” if adequate preventive measures are taken after positive tests, such as the use of a maternal face mask.

Previous studies have found fragments of the virus in the placenta, the amniotic fluid surrounding babies in the womb, vaginal fluids, and breast milk.

The study, published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), confirms previous research suggesting that COVID-19 can also be transmitted to children.

Scholars analyzed data from 472 global studies, looking at data on 952 mothers and 18,237 children.

Among the positive cases examined, there was data on 592 infants, which suggested they may have contracted the virus from their mothers.

There have been 14 documented mother-to-child transmissions.

In wealthy countries such as the United States, the risk of mother-to-child transmission was less than 0.1%.

In a related editorial, Catherine McLean Pirkle, associate professor at the University of Hawaii, wrote: “Overall, the results of this review appear reassuring.

Although the findings show that mother-to-child transmission is possible in the prenatal, during or during birth (intrapartum) and postpartum (postpartum) period, positivity rates are positive in infants born to mothers with Sars-Cov -2. low.

Also, positivity appears to be extremely rare (0.1%) among children exposed in affluent parts of the world such as North America.

“Together, the findings suggest that infants are less likely to become infected when appropriate preventive measures are taken during the birth and early postnatal periods, such as the consistent and appropriate use of personal protective equipment.”

Pirkle noted that only seven cases of transmission of the virus have been detected during pregnancy, and that “in utero transmission is possible, but extremely rare.”

After babies are born, infections can potentially develop from “various exposures,” but they are still rare, he added.

There was no association between breastfeeding and infection in infants.

Although the study suggested that mothers rarely infect their children with COVID-19, doctors said having the virus during pregnancy still poses a risk, especially if the mother has not been vaccinated.

Other research has suggested that mothers who have been vaccinated or have previously had COVID-19 may transmit Covid antibodies to their infants.