A: The Nerdy Girls posted on this several weeks back, but we have some updates from recent research:(jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/…)
Here are a few highlights:
2/
👶 Pregnant women are no more likely to have high disease severity than than non-pregnant adults.
🩸We don't know if #COVID__19 crosses the placenta; the few studies on antibodies in infants produced unreliable results because the antibody test results were prone to error.
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🤰Most newborns born to mothers with COVID-19 are negative for COVID-19.
🤱 Experts recommend feeding breast milk to infants if possible, even if the mother has COVID-19.
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🤷♀️ We don't know if #COVID increases risk of adverse effects to the neonate. There is LIMITED evidence linking COVID-19 to low birth weight, preterm birth, and low APGAR scores. But it's unclear if this is related to timing of infection (trimester) and/or disease severity
5/
Experts recommend that when someone is pregnant with Covid-19:
😷 The person in labor should wear a mask and be in an airborne isolation room.
👩🍼Mothers should be with newborns if medically stable and feasible; separation should be considered on a case by case basis.
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📝 Try not to alter your delivery plan, but special consideration should be given to medications for pain relief, preterm birth, and sedation that can decrease respiratory drive (which could worsen COVID-19 symptoms).
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🧼 Mothers who #breastfeed should wear a mask and perform good hand and breast hygiene (soap and water while singing happy birthday two times) before each feeding.
🩺 Newborns should be tested for COVID-19 if the mother has confirmed or suspected COVID-19.
8/ The upshot: We haven't seen adverse outcomes for mothers and babies, like those we can see for influenza.
We are still collecting data to better understand disease severity, transmission, and long term outcomes for mother and infant.
10/ All experts recommend continuing prenatal care in accordance with your provider’s clinical guidance. Birth in a facility (birth center or hospital) is still safer than a home birth during this time. 🏥
11/ Finally, if you are considering pregnancy, make your choice based on the risks/benefits and what is right for you. If you have the option, you may consider delaying pregnancy. However, this is ultimately a personal decision.
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1/ Q: Has almost everyone been infected with COVID by now?
A: Recent estimates suggest around 58% of the population in the US and over 70% in England have been previously infected, with BIG increases during the Omicron wave.
3/ ➡️ During the Omicron wave from December 2021-February 2022, this estimate increased from 33% to 58%.
➡️ Rates vary a lot by age, ranging from 33.2% for those over age 65 to 75% for those under age 18.
2/ Not likely. If your kids are suddenly getting sick a lot, this is likely due to “catching up” on exposures rather than a weakened immune system.
3/ Many families w/ young kids have been hunkered down for the better part of 2 years– a good % of a young child’s entire life. While isolation had *many* downsides, we can agree that not having to suction snot out of infant noses or clean up norovirus puke was a happy upside.
1/ Q: Are cases peaking? That means it’s all downhill from here, right?
A: Sort of…. Remember that even if cases come down as quickly as they rise, there will be as many cases *after* the peak as before (think area under the curve).
2/ ➡️ And if the downward slope is *slower* than the rise, we will see *more* cases during the decline from a surge.
3/ Burning fast could be a silver lining of super transmissible #Omicron. Cases rose & fell quickly in S. Africa (w/ hospitalizations & deaths still lagging). The UK appears to have turned the Omicron corner. Many US states appear past their peak in cases, w/ regional variation:
Unfortunately, this includes New Year’s Eve plans. The perfect storm of a new variant & holiday get-togethers is hitting communities & health care w/ FORCE! Testing is in short supply.
3/ Health care is under extreme pressure with surging cases. If you can avoid even one additional contact, you are helping. This is a temporary and urgent request (from a health care provider).