Fetal pulmonary artery Doppler evaluation in pregnant women after recovery from COVID-19.

Turgut, Ezgi; Ayhan, Sule Goncu; Oluklu, Deniz; Tokalioglu, Eda Ozden; Tekin, Ozlem Moraloglu; Sahin, Dilek

OBJECTIVE To evaluate fetal lung development using pulmonary artery Doppler in pregnant women who had recovered from COVID-19. METHODS The prospective case-control study included 41 pregnant women who had recovered from COVID-19 and 43 healthy pregnant women (control group). All the women in the study group had been diagnosed with COVID-19 and had completed a quarantine period. RESULTS The demographic data of patients were similar in the groups (P>0,05). Main pulmonary artery peak systolic velocity (PSV) was higher and pulsatility indices were lower in pregnant women who recovered from COVID-19 compared to the controls (P<0.001, P=0.001). Acceleration time, ejection time, and acceleration/ejection time ratio (PATET) of the fetal main pulmonary artery Doppler were significantly decreased in pregnant women who recovered from COVID-19 (P<0.001, P=0.036, and P=0.002, respectively). The patients who had recovered from COVID-19 were divided into two groups: those treated with expectant management and those treated in hospital. The pulmonary artery acceleration time and PATET ratio were significantly lower in the group treated in the hospital (P=0.023 and P=0.045, respectively). CONCLUSION Detailed Doppler evaluations of the pulmonary artery may help in evaluating the fetal adverse effects of COVID-19 disease.