Clinical and epidemiological characterization in the follow-up of newborns with COVID-19: a descriptive study

Abstract

Introduction COVID-19 disease affects newborns, but its middle and long-term effects are still unclear. Objective To describe the clinical and epidemiological characteristics and follow-up of newborns infected with SARS-CoV-2. Methods An observational and descriptive study. We included newborns with SARS-CoV-2 positive RT-PCR born from SARS-CoV-2 seropositive mothers. Delivery and newborn care were provided at the 'Instituto Nacional Materno Perinatal' from Peru between June 1 and September 30, 2020. Perinatal information was collected from medical records. Remote follow-up and face-to-face evaluations gathered epidemiological and clinical information, in addition to serological and RT-PCR tests for SARS-CoV-2. Descriptive statistics were used for analysis. Results During the study period, 4733 neonates were born at the institution. We found that 1488 (31.4%) were born from seropositive for SARS-CoV-2 mothers. Finally, we included the 34 (2.3%) newborns with positive RT-PCR for SARS-CoV-2. Regarding the included newborns, 29.4% were delivered by cesarean section, 26.5% had low birth weight, 11.8% were preterm, 26.5% were hospitalized, and one died. Twenty-eight had a remote follow-up, and 18 also had a face-to-face follow-up. A total of 64.3% were exclusively breastfed, 28.6% were mixed breastfed, and 7.1% used a substitute formula. The face-to-face evaluation was performed between one and four months of chronological age. We found that 100% had negative control RT-PCR test for COVID-19, 38.9% had a negative serological test (IgM, IgG), and 61.1% positive IgG. Conclusions Neonatal SARS-CoV-2 infection is rare, and most infected infants are asymptomatic. Vaginal delivery, breastfeeding, and joint isolation did not related with complications during hospital care. Infants under remote and in-person follow-up showed favorable clinical evolution during the study period.

COVID-19 among infants: key clinical features and remaining controversies

“…The contamination of an infant through direct skin-skin contact during the course of breastfeeding will inevitably occur, as it may spread through respiratory droplets given the infant-mother proximity. However, does the latter result in considerable secondary spread from an infected mother and overall considerable medical peril?For example, a study from Peru found that vaginal delivery, breastfeeding, and patient isolation did not affect patient complications during the hospital stay [ 50 ]. Breast milk samples may test positive for virus detection with genetic amplification technologies but no live virus [ 134 ].…”

“…28,44) Subsequently, for different age clusters within the infant age group from cumulative reviews or individual reports, the frequency of asymptomatic but test-positive patients was 0.8%-46.2%. 5,8,11,21,24,[45][46][47][48][49][50][51][52] When asymptomatic infections gained attention, it was inevitable that some infants would be admitted to the hospital for observation given the thenuncer tainty of the clinical course to follow. 24) The inclusion of mild infections among those numbers with presumed asymptomatic infections increases these frequencies to the vast majority of patients in a given study.…”

“…For example, a study from Peru found that vaginal delivery, breastfeeding, and patient isolation did not affect patient complications during the hospital stay. 50) Breast milk samples may test positive for virus detection with genetic amplification technologies but no live virus. 134) If breast milk is not the direct source of live virus, post-milk excretion contamination, other infant contact, or respiratory spread remain potential modes of transmission.…”

A multicentre study on the clinical characteristics of newborns infected with coronavirus disease 2019 during the omicron wave

“…Previous studies showed that after COVID-19 infection, newborns generally had only mild clinical manifestations and did not need special treatment ( 9 , 10 ). Nevertheless, certain studies have revealed severe scenarios.…”

Características epidemiológicas relacionadas a la vulnerabilidad en gestantes para COVID-19 ingresadas en un hospital de nivel III– 2021

“…La enfermedad resultante de este nuevo virus fue consensuadamente denominada COVID-19 a nivel internacional 5 .…”