COVID-19 INFECTION IN THIRD TRIMESTER OF PREGNANCY AND OBSTETRIC OUTCOMES.

ABSTRACT

Currently, in relation to the effect of this pandemic on pregnancy, there are more questions than certainties about the real impact of COVID-19 on pregnant women. Studies are updated and often contradict each other. There is no evidence to suggest that pregnant women with COVID-19 have higher morbidity than affected non-pregnant women. We aimed to know whether maternal morbidities were more frequent in pregnant woman with COVID-19 compared to non-infected pregnant women. A retrospective case control study was conducted during a period of 6 months. Medical records were reviewed. A 120 files of COVID-19 infected women from Mosul city, and 95 files of non-infected pregnant women were reviewed and analyzed. We found that Infection with COVID-19 had a significant effect on pregnancy outcome, infected women were more likely to have higher incidence rates of adverse perinatal outcomes in both mothers and the newborns. Also, higher odds of complications associated with severe disease form Findings of our study came in line with previous studies in other countries, however, more medical care and support should be provided to pregnant women infected with COVID-19, particularly severe cases. Further studies with larger sample size are still needed for good understanding of the effect of virus on pregnancy outcomes.