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On Friday, the media circulated the death of a 27-year-old woman who was infected with the coronavirus. When it turned out that a few days earlier she had had a baby by caesarean section, many pregnant women could feel fear. We asked a gynecologist to comment on the whole situation.
Comments are given by Dr. Tomasz Basta, MD – specialist in gynecology and obstetrics, urogynecology, plastic and aesthetic gynecology, and the founder of the Intima Clinic in Krakow.
Caesarean section is a serious operation that, like other surgical procedures, unfortunately carries the risk of various complications. However, I do not know if the cause of the patient’s death was something other than the coronavirus.
When it comes to how pregnant and postpartum women should behave during the current epidemic, they should not panic above all.
- Coronavirus in Poland. What are pregnant women to do: see a doctor or postpone visits?
Pregnant women are unlikely to be at increased risk of developing the disease, as reported by the World Health Organization. If they do not come into contact with those who are infected and follow the hygiene rules, the risk of contamination is very low. Pregnant women should follow the general rules of prevention, such as for other viral diseases:
- it is recommended to wash your hands regularly and thoroughly with soap and disinfect them with a liquid specialized in this direction;
- touching with dirty hands should be avoided: mouth, eyes, nose;
- keep a distance from people who cough or sneeze;
- when going to places where there are clusters of people, it is also worth wearing a special protective mask labeled FFP2 or FFP3 (or any one you have);
- in addition, good hydration and a healthy, balanced diet rich in vitamin C are essential. which increases immunity.
The woman in labor should not be afraid of giving birth in a hospital. According to the regulation in force, women suffering from COVID-19 are not sent to an ordinary delivery room, but to a delivery room in an infectious disease hospital. The probability that a healthy childbirth will catch the coronavirus in hospital is really very small. The wards currently comply with all the rules of prevention, and the risk of infection during childbirth and hospital stay is minimal.
On the other hand, after childbirth by both natural forces and caesarean section, in order to avoid infection with the virus, the woman simply has to follow the same precautions as before childbirth. She should use antibacterial gels, which I recommend taking with you to the hospital. I also suggest that you bring whatever mask you should wear on your face at all times. Contrary to the various opinions circulating in the media about the legitimacy of wearing masks, according to scientific sources I reach, each mask filters to some extent and retains even such small particles as those of the SARS CoV-2 virus. It is therefore a preventive measure. It should take care of immunity (with the right diet), get enough sleep and eat healthy food.
The caesarean section itself, like any other surgery, lowers immunity. However, I would like to emphasize once again that we cannot associate the decreased immunity of a woman in this state with the fact that she is more likely to die as a result of an infection caused by coronavirus. It may be less likely to have such a disease, but it should not be directly linked to higher mortality.
Such a woman is more at risk from postpartum wound infections, so she should take special care of her, according to the recommendations issued in the hospital.
- Coronavirus and pregnant women. What is the risk of infection and how can I protect myself?
In this case, the answer is simple: they should simply isolate themselves from them if they have symptoms of infection, and if they are healthy, they should follow asepsis before contact, i.e. wash their hands thoroughly with soap and sanitize their skin with alcohol-based agents.
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Dr. meas. Tomasz Basta – Graduate of Collegium Medium of the Jagiellonian University, specialist in gynecology and obstetrics, urogynecology, plastic and aesthetic gynecology. Lecturer at the Polish Society of Plastic Gynecology (PTGP) and the Polish Society of Aesthetic and Reconstructive Gynecology. Author of many research and scientific publications in these fields. The founder of the Intima Clinic in Krakow, where a team of qualified and experienced specialists takes care of the health and intimate life of their patients in a holistic way.
- Coronavirus COVID-19 – What Do Parents Need to Know?
In connection with the publication on March 23.03.2020, 27 on the MedTvoiLokony portal in the article entitled «Coronavirus, cesarean section, sepsis. We ask the gynecologist whether pregnant women should be afraid of »containing untrue and unverified information about the cause of death of a XNUMX-year-old patient of the Medical Center in Łańcut, I apologize to the doctors of the gynecology and obstetrics department at this center for my statement – Tomasz Basta, MD, PhD.