The study, published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) on Thursday, is part of an ongoing review and meta-analysis of data, which began in April 2020, and follows the researchers’ first publication in the BMJ last August.
Pregnant women are at increased risk of having a severe form of Covid-19 compared to other women, according to an ongoing global study.
Expectant mothers from ethnic minority backgrounds, or with pre-existing conditions such as obesity, high blood pressure and diabetes, were particularly at risk, researchers said.
This latest publication details analysis of the results of 192 studies – an additional 115 studies than were included in the August publication – into the impact of Covid-19 on pregnant women and their babies.
The review found one in 10 pregnant and recently pregnant women attending or admitted to hospital for any reason were diagnosed with confirmed Covid-19.
Overall, 339 pregnant women with confirmed Covid-19 died from any cause (0.02 per cent of a total 41,664 women involved in 59 studies). The overall rates of stillbirth and neonatal death are low in women with suspected or confirmed Covid-19, the review found.
The most common clinical symptoms of Covid-19 in pregnant women were fever (40 per cent) and cough (41 per cent), although compared to non-pregnant women of reproductive age, pregnant and recently pregnant women with Covid-19 were more likely to be asymptomatic.
Increased maternal age, high body mass index, non-white ethnicity, and pre-existing comorbidity, including chronic hypertension and diabetes, were identified as risk factors for pregnant women developing severe Covid-19.
While there is emerging evidence from the review that pregnancy-specific conditions such as pre-eclampsia and gestational diabetes may be associated with severe Covid-19, the authors said more data is needed to robustly assess the association between pregnancy-specific risk factors and Covid-19-related outcomes.
Lead author Dr John Allotey, of the University of Birmingham-based WHO Collaborating Centre for Global Women’s Health, said: “Pregnant women should be considered a high risk group, particularly those identified to have risk factors, for severe Covid-19 based on our findings.
“Mothers should also be reassured that the risks to their babies is very low.”
Professor Shakila Thangaratinam, corresponding author and co-director of the WHO Collaborating Centre for Global Women’s Health at the University of Birmingham, added: “In the current situation, where evidence is rapidly produced, our living systematic review – underpinned by robust methods and continually updated at regular intervals – is crucial to address important research questions and to shape healthcare policy and clinical decision-making.
“Pregnant women and healthcare professionals will need to take into account the additional risks faced by pregnant women with Covid-19 in making decisions such as taking-up of vaccines if offered to prevent Covid-19, and plan management in pregnancy.”
