Post-acute sequelae of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) after infection during pregnancy
Metz, TD; Reeder, HT; Clifton, RG; et al., Obstetrics & Gynecology
Published
September 2024
Journal
Obstetrics & Gynecology
Abstract
Objective: To estimate the prevalence of post-acute sequelae of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection (PASC) after infection with SARS-CoV-2 during pregnancy and to characterize associated risk factors. Methods: In a multicenter cohort study (NIH RECOVER [Researching COVID to Enhance Recovery]-Pregnancy Cohort), individuals who were pregnant during their first SARS-CoV-2 infection were enrolled across the United States from December 2021 to September 2023, either within 30 days of their infection or at differential time points thereafter. The primary outcome was PASC , defined as score of 12 or higher based on symptoms and severity as previously published by the NIH RECOVER-Adult Cohort, at the first study visit at least 6 months after the participant's first SARS-CoV-2 infection. Risk factors for PASC were evaluated, including sociodemographic characteristics, clinical characteristics before SARS-CoV-2 infection (baseline comorbidities, trimester of infection, vaccination status), and acute infection severity (classified by need for oxygen therapy). Multivariable logistic regression models were fitted to estimate associations between these characteristics and presence of PASC. Results: Of the 1,502 participants, 61.1% had their first SARS-CoV-2 infection on or after December 1, 2021 (ie, during Omicron variant dominance); 51.4% were fully vaccinated before infection; and 182 (12.1%) were enrolled within 30 days of their acute infection. The prevalence of PASC was 9.3% (95% CI, 7.9-10.9%) measured at a median of 10.3 months (interquartile range 6.1-21.5) after first infection. The most common symptoms among individuals with PASC were postexertional malaise (77.7%), fatigue (76.3%), and gastrointestinal symptoms (61.2%). In a multivariable model, the proportion PASC positive with vs without history of obesity (14.9% vs 7.5%, adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 1.65, 95% CI, 1.12-2.43), depression or anxiety disorder (14.4% vs 6.1%, aOR 2.64, 95% CI, 1.79-3.88) before first infection, economic hardship (self-reported difficulty covering expenses) (12.5% vs 6.9%, aOR 1.57, 95% CI, 1.05-2.34), and treatment with oxygen during acute SARS-CoV-2 infection (18.1% vs 8.7%, aOR 1.86, 95% CI, 1.00-3.44) were associated with increased prevalence of PASC. Conclusion: The prevalence of PASC at a median time of 10.3 months after SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy was 9.3% in the NIH RECOVER-Pregnancy Cohort. The predominant symptoms were postexertional malaise, fatigue, and gastrointestinal symptoms. Several socioeconomic and clinical characteristics were associated with PASC after infection during pregnancy. Clinical trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov , NCT05172024.
Authors
Torri D Metz, Harrison T Reeder, Rebecca G Clifton, Valerie Flaherman, Leyna V Aragon, Leah Castro Baucom, Carmen J Beamon, Alexis Braverman, Jeanette Brown, Tingyi Cao, Ann Chang, Maged M Costantine, Jodie A Dionne, Kelly S Gibson, Rachel S Gross, Estefania Guerreros, Mounira Habli, Jennifer Hadlock, Jenny Han, Rachel Hess, Leah Hillier, M Camille Hoffman, Matthew K Hoffman, Brenna L Hughes, Xiaolin Jia, Minal Kale, Stuart D Katz, Victoria Laleau, Gail Mallett, Alem Mehari, Hector Mendez-Figueroa, Grace A McComsey, Jonathan Monteiro, Vanessa Monzon, Megumi J Okumura, Deepti Pant, Luis D Pacheco, Anna Palatnik, Kristy T S Palomares, Samuel Parry, Christian M Pettker, Beth A Plunkett, Athena Poppas, Patrick Ramsey, Uma M Reddy, Dwight J Rouse, George R Saade, Grecio J Sandoval, Frank Sciurba, Hyagriv N Simhan, Daniel W Skupski, Amber Sowles, John M Thorp, Alan T N Tita, Samantha Wiegand, Steven J Weiner, Lynn M Yee, Leora I Horwitz, Andrea S Foulkes, Vanessa Jacoby; NIH Researching COVID to Enhance Recovery (RECOVER) Consortium*
Keywords
Humans; Female; Pregnancy; COVID-19/epidemiology/complications; Adult; Pregnancy Complications, Infectious/epidemiology/virology; SARS-CoV-2; Risk Factors; United States/epidemiology; Post-Acute COVID-19 Syndrome; Prevalence; Cohort Studies; Severity of Illness Index
Short Summary
The RECOVER Initiative did a study to see how often pregnant women get Long COVID. The study looked at 1,502 pregnant participants. Participants took surveys about Long COVID symptoms around 10 months after they first got COVID. About 9% of them reported having Long COVID symptoms. The most common symptoms participants had were feeling very tired, especially after physical or mental activity, or being tired all the time. Some participants had stomach and gut problems. RECOVER researchers also found that people were more likely to get Long COVID if they needed extra oxygen while sick with COVID; had trouble paying bills; or had other health problems before COVID, such as obesity, depression, or anxiety. Future research will focus on whether having COVID while pregnant changes the chance of developing Long COVID. Researchers will compare this to people who got COVID when they were not pregnant.