The incidence, characteristics and outcomes of pregnant women hospitalized with symptomatic and asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection in the UK from March to September 2020: A national cohort study using the UK Obstetric Surveillance System (UKOSS)
File(s)
Published version
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
BACKGROUND: There is a lack of population level data on risk factors, incidence and impact of SARS-CoV-2 infection in pregnant women and their babies. The primary aim of this study was to describe the incidence, characteristics and outcomes of hospitalized pregnant women with symptomatic and asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 in the UK compared to pregnant women without SARS-CoV-2. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We conducted a national, prospective cohort study of all hospitalized pregnant women with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 from 01/03/2020 to 31/08/2020 using the UK Obstetric Surveillance System. Incidence rates were estimated using national maternity data. Overall, 1148 hospitalized women had confirmed SARS-CoV-2 in pregnancy, 63% of which were symptomatic. The estimated incidence of hospitalization with symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 was 2.0 per 1000 maternities (95% CI 1.9-2.2) and for asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 was 1.2 per 1000 maternities (95% CI 1.1-1.4). Compared to pregnant women without SARS-CoV-2, women hospitalized with symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 were more likely to be overweight or obese (adjusted OR 1.86, (95% CI 1.39-2.48) and aOR 2.07 (1.53-2.29)), to be of Black, Asian or Other minority ethnic group (aOR 6.24, (3.93-9.90), aOR 4.36, (3.19-5.95) and aOR 12.95, (4.93-34.01)), and to have a relevant medical comorbidity (aOR 1.83 (1.32-2.54)). Hospitalized pregnant women with symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 were more likely to be admitted to intensive care (aOR 57.67, (7.80-426.70)) but the absolute risk of poor outcomes was low. Cesarean births and neonatal unit admission were increased regardless of symptom status (symptomatic aOR 2.60, (1.97-3.42) and aOR 3.08, (1.99-4.77); asymptomatic aOR 2.02, (1.52-2.70) and aOR 1.84, (1.12-3.03)). The risks of stillbirth or neonatal death were not significantly increased, regardless of symptom status. CONCLUSIONS: We have identified factors that increase the risk of symptomatic and asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 in pregnancy. Clinicians can be reassured that the majority of women do not experience severe complications of SARS-CoV-2 in pregnancy.
Date Issued
2021-05-05
Date Acceptance
2021-04-20
Citation
PLoS One, 2021, 16 (5)
ISSN
1932-6203
Publisher
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Journal / Book Title
PLoS One
Volume
16
Issue
5
Copyright Statement
© 2021 Vousden et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
License URL
Identifier
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33951100
PII: PONE-D-21-00575
Subjects
Humans
Obesity
Pregnancy Outcome
Cesarean Section
Incidence
Odds Ratio
Cohort Studies
Prospective Studies
Carrier State
Pregnancy
Minority Groups
Databases, Factual
Adult
Pregnant Women
Intensive Care Units
Female
Young Adult
United Kingdom
COVID-19
SARS-CoV-2
General Science & Technology
Publication Status
Published
Coverage Spatial
United States
Article Number
ARTN e0251123