A baby was born positive with Covid-19 to a mother who was infected with the coronavirus. The birth took place in Attica Hospital in Athens on Friday. It is the first time that a pregnant woman has passed the virus to her unborn or newborn baby, Greek media report.
The pregnancy was in the 37th week and with a history of gestational diabetes. The mother developed febrile fever and cough 8 days ago. Both she and her husband underwent molecular testing with RT-PCR, which was positive for both.
On Friday, the mother went to the Attikon Hospital as the labor process had started. The PCR test was “weakly positive” which indicates that the virus load was in remission, Greek media healthreport reports.
The newborn baby boy, weighing 3410 grams, was transferred to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit for monitoring.
The delivery was via caesarean section, which eliminates the possibility of vertical Covid-19 transmission during childbirth.
To date, all newborns born at Attica Hospital to mothers with Covid-19 infection have tested negative for repeated molecular tests.
According to Sofia Kalantaridou, Professor of Obstetrics-Gynecology / Sterilization of the Medical School, “this finding is in favor of the vertical transmission of the virus in the endometrium, from the mother to the baby.”
According to WHO website, it was still unknown “if a pregnant woman with COVID-19 can pass the virus to her fetus or baby during pregnancy or delivery. To date, the active virus has not been found in samples of fluid around the baby in the womb or breastmilk.”
