Patient characteristics associated with SARS‐CoV‐2 infection in parturients admitted for labour and delivery in Massachusetts during the spring 2020 surge: A prospective cohort study

Reale, Sharon C.; Lumbreras‐Marquez, Mario I.; King, Chih H.; Burns, Stacey L.; Fields, Kara G.; Diouf, Khady; Goldfarb, Ilona T.; Ciaranello, Andrea L.; Robinson, Julian N.; Gregory, Katherine E.; Huybrechts, Krista F.; Bateman, Brian T.

BACKGROUND: While studies from large cities affected by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) have reported on the prevalence of SARS‐CoV‐2 in the context of universal testing during admission for delivery, the patient demographic, social and clinical factors associated with SARS‐CoV‐2 infection in pregnant women are not fully understood. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the epidemiological factors associated with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) infection in women admitted for labour and delivery, in the context of universal screening at four Boston‐area hospitals. METHODS: In this prospective cohort study, we reviewed the health records of all women admitted for labour and delivery at four hospitals from the largest health system in Massachusetts between 19 April 2020 and 27 June 2020. We calculated the risk of SARS‐CoV‐2 infection, including asymptomatic infection. We calculated associations between SARS‐CoV‐2 infection and demographic and clinical characteristics. RESULTS: A total of 93 patients (3.2%, 95% confidence interval 2.5, 3.8) tested positive for SARS‐CoV‐2 infection on admission for labour and delivery out of 2945 patients included in the analysis; 80 (86.0%) of the patients who tested positive were asymptomatic at the time of testing. Factors associated with SARS‐CoV‐2 infection included the following: younger age, obesity, African American or Hispanic race/ethnicity, residence in heavily affected communities (as measured in cases reported per capita), presence of a household member with known SARS‐CoV‐2 infection, non‐health care essential worker occupation and MassHealth or Medicaid insurance compared to commercial insurance. 93.8% of patients testing positive for SARS‐CoV‐2 on admission had one or more identifiable factors associated with disease acquisition. CONCLUSIONS: In this large sample of deliveries during the height of the surge in infections during the spring of 2020, SARS‐CoV‐2 infection was largely concentrated in patients with distinct demographic characteristics, those largely from disadvantaged communities. Racial disparities seen in pregnancy persist with respect to SARS‐CoV‐2 infection.