Pregnancy and COVID: Your unborn child is safe from infection

According to a recent study, COVID-19 of mild to moderate severity in pregnant women appears to have no effect on the brain of the developing fetus. The study was presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America.

Researchers used fetal MRI to study 33 patients with COVID-19 infection during pregnancy. The patients were roughly 28 weeks into their pregnancies, with symptom onset occurring at 18 weeks into the pregnancy. The most common symptoms were loss or a reduced sense of smell and taste, dry cough, fever and shortness of breath.

Two board-certified radiologists with several years of experience in fetal MRI evaluated the scans. They found that the brain development in the assessed areas was age-appropriate in all fetuses. There were no findings indicative of infection of the fetal brain.

There was no evidence that a maternal COVID infection has any effect on the brain development of the unborn child. However, active protection against SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy remains important.

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