The Assessment of Neurological Development of the Infants with Prenatal COVID-19 Exposure

Year 2023, Volume: 13 Issue: 2, 257 - 260, 15.06.2023

Senem Ayça , Semra Yüksel , Hatice Yaşat Nacar , Pınar Arıcan

https://doi.org/10.33808/clinexphealthsci.1102756

Abstract

Objective: The effects of prenatal coronavirus 2019 disease (COVID-19) exposure on the infantile neurological development are unknown. It has been considered that the inflammatory, thrombotic, and vascular changes occurred in the placentas taken from pregnant women diagnosed with COVID-19 and the inflammatory nature of COVID-19 infection may lead to negative obstetric and neurological events. We aimed to assess the potential neurological effects of prenatal COVID-19 exposure on the infant.
Methods: The present study included 2–12-month-old infants born to women with positive real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction test results for COVID-19 from the population of pregnant patients under routine follow-up. The neurological examinations and the Denver II Developmental Screening Test (DDST II) were performed for 41 infants aged 2–12 months to assess the neurological effects of prenatal COVID-19 exposure.
Results: The average gestational age of the infants was 38.7 ± 1.9 weeks, and the average birth weight was 3198 ± 543 g. Eight of the infants had a history of hospitalization in the neonatal intensive care unit. The neurological examination and the neuromotor development of 40 (96%) infants were normal for their age group. Only one infant had abnormal neurological examination and DDST II result.
Conclusion: The findings of the study suggest that prenatal COVID-19 exposure has no negative neurological impact on infants. Long-term prospective studies with larger sample sizes are needed for more comprehensive assessment of the neurological effects of prenatal COVID-19 exposure on the infants.

Keywords

COVID-19, infant, Denver 2 Developmental Screening Test

Supporting Institution

None

References

• Chen H, Guo J, Wang C, et al. Clinical characteristics and intrauterine vertical transmission potential of COVID-19 infection in nine pregnant women: A retrospective review of medical records. Lancet. 2020;395:809-15.
• Shanes ED, Mithal LB, Otero S, Azad HA, Miller ES, Goldstein JA. Placental pathology in COVID-19. Am J Clin Pathol. 2020;154:23-32
• Baergen RN, Heller DS. Placental pathology in covid-19 positive mothers: Preliminary findings. Pediatr Dev Pathol. 2020;23(3):177-180.
• Frankenburg WK, Dodds JB. The Denver developmental screening test. J Pediatr. 1967 Aug;71(2):181-91
• Yalaz K, Anlar B, Bayoğlu B. Denver II Gelişimsel Tarama Testi “Türkiye Standardizasyonu”. Denver II Developmental Screening Test Handbook. Ankara: Anıl Grup Matbaacılık, 2010 ‘Turkish’.
• Goldenberg RL, Hauth JC, Andrews WW. Intrauterine infection and preterm delivery. N Engl J Med. 2000;342(20):1500-7.
• Mor G, Cardenas I. The immune system in pregnancy: A unique complexity. Am J Reprod Immunol. 2010;63(6):425-33.
• Ashdown H, Dumont Y, Ng M, Poole S, Boksa P, Luheshi GN. The role of cytokines in mediating effects of prenatal infection on the fetus: Implications for schizophrenia. Mol Psychiatry. 2006;11(1):47-55.
• Gilmore JH, Fredrik Jarskog L, Vadlamudi S, Lauder JM. Prenatal infection and risk for schizophrenia: IL-1beta, IL-6, and TNF alpha inhibit cortical neuron dendrite development. Neuropsychopharmacology. 2004;29:1221-9.
• Atladottir HO, Thorsen P, Ostergaard L, Schendel DE, Lemcke S, Abdallah M, et al. Maternal infection requiring hospitalization during pregnancy and autism spectrum disorders. J Autism Dev Disord. 2010; 40:1423–30.
• Vivanti AJ, Vauloup-Fellous C, Prevot S, et al. Transplacental transmission of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Nat Commun. 2020;11:3572.
• Tiantian Xiao, Shiwen Xi, Linkong Zeng, et al. Multicentre observational study on neonates exposed to SARS-CoV- 2 in China: the Neo-SARS-CoV 2 Study protocol. BMJ Open. 2020;10(7):e038004.