Experts have been trying to figure out for months how exactly COVID-19 impacts the human body, especially in pregnant women. Now, according to a new study the novel virus’ transmission from mom to baby during pregnancy isn’t all the common., conducted by experts from the School of Medicine at the University of Nottingham and published in, found that the rate of infection was no greater when baby was born vaginally, breastfed or allowed contact with the mother.
These findings go against the earlier reports that C-sections may be safer in reducing the risk of transmission, as well as that the baby should be isolated from the mom at birth and be formula fed. According to the study, there was little evidence that supported these measures. For the study, experts systematically reviewed 49 studies on the topic of coronavirus and pregnancy. These studies looked at data from 666 newborn babies and 655 women . Of the women that gave birth vaginally, only eight out of 292 had a baby that tested positive for COVID-19. Meanwhile, Of the 364 women who had c-sections, 20 had a baby that tested positive for the virus.
The experts found that transmission of COVID to newborns is uncommon, and, when it does happen, often asymptomatic. Plus, the infection rates are no higher depending on whether baby was born vaginally, breastfed or allowed contact with the mom immediately after birth. “We wanted to look at the outcome for babies whose mothers contracted the virus and see if the route of birth, method of infant feeding and mother/baby interaction increased the risk of babies contracting the virus. From our results, we are satisfied that the chance of newborn infection with COVID-19 is low. We would also stress that a vaginal birth and breastfeeding are safe for mothers who find themselves in these circumstances,” Dr.