Specialists in 12 nations, including the United States, dissected placental and examination tissue from 64 stillbirths and four infants who kicked the bucket not long after birth. The cases generally elaborate unvaccinated ladies who had COVID-19 during their pregnancy.The review reinforces proof from little case reports it affirms that placenta harm rather than a contamination of the baby is the logical reason for some COVID-19-related stillbirths, said Dr. Jeffery Goldstein, a pathologist at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine.He was not associated with the review, which was distributed Thursday in Archives of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine.Past proof proposes the possibilities of stillbirth are higher than expected for pregnant ladies with COVID-19, especially from the variation. Inoculation suggestions incorporate pregnant ladies and note their higher gamble for complexities when tainted.Leadauthor Dr. David Schwartz, an Atlanta pathologist, said other infections can infiltrate the placenta and cause stillbirth, typically by infecting and damaging the fetus. A recent example is Zika virus.He and his colleagues wanted to see if that was the case with stillbirths in women with COVID-19. But what they found was almost the opposite: it was the placenta that was infected and extensively destroyed.
"Many of these cases had over 90% of the placenta destroyed - very scary," said Schwartz.
Normal placenta tissue is a healthy reddish hue and spongy. The specimens they studied were stiff, with dark discolorations of dead tissue. While other infections can sometimes damage the placenta, Schwartz said he'd never seen them cause such consistent,extensive destruction.
The placenta is an organ that forms and attaches to the womb during pregnancy. It connects with the umbilical cord, providing oxygen and nourishment from the mother's bloodstream.
The virus likely reached the placenta through the bloodstream, attaching to susceptible cells and causing protein deposits and an unusual form of inflammation that blocked blood flow and oxygen. That in turn led to placenta tissue death and suffocation, the researchers said. ..
Coronavirus was also detected in some of the fetuses, but evidence of suffocation in the womb points to placenta damage as the more likely cause of death, they said.
A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report in November found that among pregnant U.S. women infected with COVID-19, about 1 in 80 deliveries was a stillbirth - the loss of a fetus anytime after 20 weeks. That's compared with 1 in 155 among uninfected women.
The study stillbirths occurred on average at 30 weeks; normal pregnancies last about 40 weeks.
High blood pressure, certain chronic illnesses and fetal abnormalities are among conditions that can increase chances for stillbirths, including in women with COVID-1
It is unclear whether omicron infections also increase chances for stillbirths; the study was done before that highly infectious variant emerge.
Researchers in 12 countries, including the United States, analyzed placental and autopsy tissue from 64 stillbirths and four newborns who died shortly after birth. The cases all involved unvaccinated women who had COVID-19 during their pregnancy.
The study bolsters evidence from small case reports it confirms that placenta damage rather than an infection of the fetus is the likely cause of many COVID-19-related stillbirths, said Dr. Jeffery Goldstein, a pathologist at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine
He was not involved in the study, which was published Thursday in Archives of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine
You must be logged in to post a comment.