Editorial: Maternal SARS-CoV-2 Infection and Pregnancy Outcomes from Current Global Study Data

Parums, Dinah V.

During the global COVID-19 pandemic, data from clinical studies, systematic review, and population registry data have shown that when compared with non-pregnant women, SARS-CoV-2 infection in pregnancy is associated with a small increase in risk to the mother. Large cohort studies and registry data collected from 2020 have included the US Surveillance for Emerging Threats to Mothers and Babies Network (SET-NET), COVI-PREG, the UK and Global Pregnancy and Neonatal Outcomes in COVID-19 (PAN-COVID) study, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Section on Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine (SONPM) National Perinatal COVID-19 Registry, the Swedish Pregnancy Register, and the Canadian Surveillance of COVID-19 in Pregnancy (CANCOVID-Preg) registry. Recently published data have shown that most maternal infections with SARS-CoV-2 occur during the third trimester and result in a small increase in hospital admission, admission to the intensive care unit (ICU), mechanical ventilation, preterm birth, and increased cesarean sections in mothers infected with SARS-CoV-2. However, currently approved vaccines given in pregnancy result in an immune response to current SARS-CoV-2 variants. Transplacental transmission of SARS-CoV-2 to the fetus can occur, but the immediate and long-term effects on the newborn infant remain unclear. Therefore, women who are pregnant or planning a pregnancy should be managed according to current clinical guidelines with timely vaccination to prevent infection with SARS-CoV-2. This Editorial summarizes what is currently known about maternal SARS-CoV-2 infection and pregnancy outcomes from multinational studies.