Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) and Pregnancy: A Narrative Review

Abstract

A novel viral respiratory disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome, coronavirus 2 (SARS-COV-2), is responsible for a pandemic situation in the world. Pregnant women are susceptible to this virus due to physiologic changes in the immunologic system. The risk of some adverse pregnancy outcomes, such as death, stillbirth, preeclampsia, and intrauterine fetal distress, may increase in infected pregnant women. Infected women should be isolated and investigated, and they should admit to a designated hospital with adequate facilities and multi-disciplinary expertise to manage them. Furthermore, the chances of adverse neonatal complications, such as small for gestational age, large for gestational age, shortness of breath, thrombocytopenia with abnormal liver function, rapid heart rate, vomiting, and pneumothorax, may increase in an affected neonate. This study reviews the problems and guidelines of covid-19 in pregnancy.

Keywords: COVID-19; childbirth; delivery; pandemic; pregnancy; women.