Pregnant Women who get COVID are more likely to develop Long-term COVID.

(VOR News) – A recent study suggests pregnant women that clinicians may be disregarding the persistent symptoms that nearly 10% of expectant women with COVID-19 experience.

Dr. Torri Metz, vice chair of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Utah Health and co-leader of the study, expressed her skepticism that the majority of obstetric clinicians are as knowledgeable about Long COVID as they should be.

“But people are having these symptoms, and we need to make sure that we’re not forgetting that these could be long-term manifestations of their SARS-CoV-2 infection,” Metz stated in a press release from the university.

Prior research has indicated that pregnant women who are infected with COVID-19 are at an increased risk. For example, it increases the probability of stillbirth or preterm delivery, as well as the likelihood that the mother will require hospitalization or pass away.

Pregnant women have not been studied for extended COVID-19.

For the investigation, Metz’s group recruited over 1,500 pregnant women nationwide who had never contracted COVID-19 during their pregnancy. Six months after their initial infection, at least half of the women’s symptoms were self-reported.

Researchers found that a total of 9.3% of expectant women who contracted COVID during their pregnancy experienced long-term symptoms. The most prevalent symptoms were exhaustion, gastrointestinal issues, and a sense of being depleted or fatigued from daily activities.

In order to enhance comprehension and treatment of Long COVID, the National Institutes of Health supervised a comprehensive national partnership that encompassed this investigation.

According to researchers, its scale provided a precise representation of risk across demographic categories.

According to Dr. David Goff, division director for cardiovascular sciences at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health, “this is a critical study” due to the fact that pregnancy and the postpartum period are among the most vulnerable periods of an individual’s existence.

The National Institutes of Health provided funding for the investigation.

“In order to develop targeted interventions for this population, this study offers important insights by evaluating how individual characteristics interact with SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy.” said Goff.

The researchers conducted an additional study that solely included women who reported symptoms more than 12 weeks after giving birth in order to eliminate the possibility that the symptoms they reported from Long COVID-19 were actually related to pregnancy.

The initial findings were verified, and the risk of Long COVID was identical.

Dr. Vanessa Jacoby, an obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive sciences professor at the University of California, San Francisco, stated, “Our results indicate that Pregnant women individuals who contracted COVID-19 may experience significant, protracted symptoms following their pregnancy, including exhaustion, even after engaging in activities that were routine prior to the infection.”

Apparently Metz overestimated the damage to pregnant women.

Despite the fact that the high rate of extended COVID was unexpected to researchers. This is due to the possibility that women who experienced symptoms that dissipated prior to being questioned about their long-term COVID symptoms were excluded from the study.

The research revealed that individuals who were rotund and had experienced anxiety or depression prior to the onset of the illness had a higher likelihood of developing Long COVID symptoms.

Financial stress was also associated with increased rates of Long COVID; however, researchers emphasized that it was uncertain whether these issues were the cause or consequence of the persistent symptoms.

The findings were published in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology on July 11.

Prior research has yielded a variety of findings regarding the long-term impact of COVID-19 on the general population, ranging from 10% to over 20%. Women who are Pregnant women are situated at the lower end of this spectrum.

Metz suggests that this may be due to the fact that the immune systems of expectant mothers respond to infections with less vigor.

She believes that this may increase their initial risk of developing a severe illness, but it may also decrease their likelihood of developing chronic organ injury that could lead to long-lasting symptoms. Another argument is that pregnant women are generally healthier and younger than other demographics.

“We need to have this on our radar as we’re seeing patients,” Metz asserted. We sincerely do not wish to overlook this opportunity. Furthermore, we aim to direct individuals to the appropriate experts who specialize in Long COVID.

SOURCE: HD

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