DIAGNOSES AND COMPLICATIONS OF NEONATES OF COVID-19 POSITIVE MOTHERS

Abstract

Introduction: Pregnant women and newborns were characterized as a risk group during the SARS-CoV-2 virus pandemic. Vertical transmission from mother to newborn still seems unlikely, and there is a gap in the literature on the subject. Objectives: To identify the diagnoses of newborns born to mothers who were infected with SARS-COV-2 at the time of delivery, admitted to a Joint Accommodation or Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in a hospital in the interior of the state of São Paulo. Methodology: The research was carried out in a tertiary hospital in the interior of the state of São Paulo, through a cross-sectional study through the documentary analysis of medical records of newborns with 0 days of life until their discharge, admitted to the Joint Lodging and Neonatal ICU, whose mothers were positive with COVID-19 at delivery, from December 31, 2019 to September 30, 2022. Results: A total of 112 newborns of mothers diagnosed with COVID-19 were identified. Of these, 100 were housed together after birth, while 12 were transferred to the NICU. The average length of stay was 8 days in the NICU and a further 4 days in the rooming-in unit, totaling 12 days. All the newborns were breastfed and showed signs of respiratory distress, most of them mild. Only one required invasive mechanical ventilation, six non-invasive mechanical ventilation, and all received oxygen. Most had no radiological alterations and all tested negative in the RT-PCR test. As for laboratory tests, the scores varied, with half of the newborns born by normal delivery and only 3 of the 12 considered premature. Conclusion: The presence of COVID-19 in mothers did not cause substantial additional impacts on newborns, and none of the newborns tested were diagnosed positive for the disease, indicating no vertical transmission. Further studies are essential to gain a comprehensive understanding of the profile of this population group, including more in-depth investigations into the possible routes of contamination of newborns, preferably using a larger sample.