The coronavirus has mutated in the body of a 5-day-old newborn. This is the first such case in the world

A baby infected with the coronavirus was born in a hospital in Malmö. A few days later, a mutant version of COVID-19 was detected in him. This is probably the first such case in the world.

1. A child was born in a Swedish hospital to whom the mother passed on the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus in utero
2. Five days after birth, doctors detected a mutant version of COVID-19 in the newborn. This has never happened before
3. The baby’s body quickly neutralized the virus, thanks to its own immune system, not antibodies provided by the mother
4. The coronavirus in this case damaged the placenta and passed through it, but scientists say this is rare. The placenta protects the baby from infections in most cases
5. However, this was not the first time that a child infected with coronavirus was born in the womb. The first took place in July last year in France
6. You can find more such stories on the TvoiLokony home page

Coronavirus. A child infected with COVID-19 in the womb

Mehreen Zaigham, a gynecologist at Skåne University Hospital in Malmö, wrote about the event on «The Conversation». A pregnant woman, suffering from severe abdominal pain, was transported to this facility by ambulance. The examination showed that the baby had an abnormally low heart rate, which could indicate hypoxia.

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The delivery was performed by caesarean section. Blood tests taken at birth confirmed that the baby did indeed have very low oxygen levels, and throat swabs showed that both mother and baby were infected with the coronavirus.

Careful analysis confirmed that the baby had been infected with COVID-19 in the womb, and the viral genomes in both of them were identical.

The coronavirus has mutated in the newborn’s body five days after birth

The baby was separated from the mother immediately after the caesarean section. A few days later, another study found that the baby’s viral population contains both the original virus strain (the one the mother had) and a mutated version of it.

This is likely the first time a genetic alteration of the coronavirus has been passed on to a newborn baby before birth.

A mutation called A107G appeared just five days after the baby was born. It was surprising to scientists that it happened so quickly. The changes could have been stimulated by the child’s contact with the external environment outside the womb.

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The mother quickly recovered from COVID-19 infection and was discharged home four days after giving birth. The child had to stay longer in the hospital because it was a premature baby born in the 34th week of pregnancy.

Importantly, the baby showed no serious symptoms of COVID-19 infection. The newborn’s body developed antibodies to the coronavirus, his own immune system did it, because the doctors did not find any antibodies in the mother’s milk.

The coronavirus can damage the placenta

Examination of the placenta showed that it was badly damaged. The coronavirus protein was on both the maternal and fetal side. Previous studies have indicated that placental insufficiency and abnormal fetal heart rhythm have been observed in pregnant women infected with COVID-19.

However, this is quite rare. The placenta is usually an effective barrier to protect your baby from most infections. This is because the ACE-2 protein, needed for the coronavirus to enter cells, is present in the placenta in small amounts.

A mother suffering from COVID-19 transmits antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 to her child

Research published a few weeks ago in the journal JAMA Pediatrics showed that a mother with coronavirus can pass antibodies to her unborn baby

“The longer the time between the mother’s infection and delivery, the greater the transfer of antibodies to the baby’s body,” wrote the authors of the study.

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Research has also shown that only certain antibodies can pass through the placenta – only IgG antibodies, also known as immunoglobulins G, can reach the fetus and provide it with immune protection.

First newborn baby with coronavirus

The first case of a newborn child detected in the body of the coronavirus was reported in the media in February 2020. Then, a child of a mother infected with COVID-19 was born in Wuhan, China. Thirty hours after giving birth, the virus was also discovered in the baby. However, doctors were unable to determine whether the newborn was infected through the placenta or even after birth.

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The case where a child was found to have COViD-19 immediately after birth occurred in March in the UK. Britain. A pregnant woman came to a hospital in London with suspicion of pneumonia. Her body tested positive for the coronavirus. The newborn was examined shortly after birth and found to be infected as well. However, in this case as well, it was not certain how he got infected.

The fact that SARS-CoV-2 was passed on to a child in the womb was officially announced for the first time by doctors from France in July. A 23-year-old pregnant woman was transported to the Antoine Béclère Hospital in Paris, suffering from a high fever and cough. The test showed that she was infected with COVID-19. The presence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus was also found in the newborn boy, and he was also diagnosed with encephalitis caused by the virus. As with the Malmö pregnant woman, the placenta was also damaged. This convinced doctors that the coronavirus had entered this route.

In Poland, no cases of the birth of a child infected with coronavirus in the womb have so far been officially recorded. The first child whose mother was infected with COVID-19 was born at the end of March 2020 in a hospital in Zgierz. The child, however, turned out to be healthy.

This may interest you:

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2. There is a shortage of places in hospitals. «Ambulances travel 100 km. They bounce from door to door »
3. What was discovered in Wuhan? The doctor reveals the details

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