How dangerous is Covid-19 for pregnant women?

30-week Pregnant Marzanne Lennox has been placed on a ventilator in ICU. Her father Skip Scheepers told Pretoria Moot Rekord that she was the very example of a healthy young woman last week Tuesday. He said his daughter didn’t show any of the usual Covid-19 symptoms like a fever or body aches – and now she’s in hospital. She only had a blocked nose he said.

Also Read: I don’t want to be pregnant in a pandemic

Last week Monday Marzanne’s condition worsened and she started experiencing shortness of breath. Skip told his wife their daughter is not looking well and the couple took her to the hospital where she tested positive for Covid-19. She was placed on a ventilator. Marzanne is still in the hospital with the ventilator at 70%.

Her mom and dad have been placed under quarantine but luckily, they haven’t shown any symptoms of the virus yet.

How dangerous is Covid-19 for pregnant women?

Dr Howard Manyonga, an obstetrician and Head of The Birthing Team in Gauteng and Kwa-Zulu Natal told Living & Loving last week that there is emerging evidence that suggests the outcomes for pregnant patients who are admitted to high care with Covid-19 may be worse than that of non-pregnant patients.  He also said that they don’t currently know if pregnant women are at a higher risk of getting sick from Covid-19 than the general public as there just isn’t enough research on the virus yet.

Also Read:The Egyptian government encourages women to avoid pregnancy due to Covid-19

How will Covid-19 affect my unborn baby?

According to MediClinic, there is no increased risk of miscarriage or having a baby with abnormalities should you contract the virus. They also say that there’s very little evidence to suggest that a pregnant woman can pass the virus on to her unborn baby. They add that newborns don’t appear to be particularly sick if they do become infected.

“While there may be a higher risk of your baby being born prematurely, the research on this is not yet conclusive,” they say on their website.

Living And Loving Staff

Our experienced editors work with trained journalists and qualified experts to compile accurate, insightful and helpful information about pregnancy, birth, early childhood development and parenting. Our content is reviewed regularly by our panel of advisors, which include medical doctors and healthcare professionals. Meet the Living & Loving Team and our Online Experts.

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