BALTIMORE — A University of Maryland School of Medicine study suggests pregnant women hospitalized with COVID-19 may have a significantly lower risk of death than those not pregnant.
The study examined medical records from nearly 1,100 pregnant women and more than 9,800 non-pregnant patients aged 15 to 45 who were hospitalized with COVID-19 and pneumonia.
Less than one percent of the pregnant patients died from COVID-19 compared to 3.5 percent of non-pregnant patients, according to the study findings.
Researchers did find pregnant patients were more likely to be younger and have fewer health conditions, including diabetes, obesity, hypertension, and chronic lung disease, compared to the non-pregnant patients.
“I think this is reassuring news for women who are pregnant and worried about getting infected with COVID-19 as new variants emerge,” said study corresponding author Dr. Anthony Harris,Professor of Epidemiology & Public Health at UMSOM. “While the study does not tell us for certain that pregnancy does not pose added risks for women, the data certainly point in that direction."
