ACOG
The New York Times (1/31, Caron) reported researchers found that pregnant women transfer SARS-CoV-2 antibodies to their fetuses and transfer “more antibodies to their babies if they are infected earlier in their pregnancies.” The findings (1/29) were published in JAMA Pediatrics. Dr. Denise Jamieson, an obstetrician at Emory University and a member of ACOG’s Covid expert group, said the placenta is a complex organ that has been understudied and “What we really want to know is, do antibodies from the vaccine efficiently cross the placenta and protect the baby, the way we know happens in influenza and pertussis.” Dr. Mark Turrentine, a member of ACOG’s Covid expert group, said: “It’s plausible that the Covid vaccine will offer protection to both pregnant mothers and their infants. To me, this study highlights that inclusion of pregnant women in clinical trials such as the Covid-19 vaccine is essential, particularly when the benefit of vaccination is greater than the potential risk of a life-threatening disease.”
CIDRAP (1/29, Van Beusekom) reported the researchers found in the study that “SARS-CoV-2 antibodies transferred across the placenta in 87% of pregnant women who had COVID-19 at some point, suggesting that newborns of seropositive mothers may have some protection against the novel coronavirus at birth.”
