ICUs admit 40 with Covid who were either pregnant or post-partum since pandemic began

From March 1, 2020, to September 30, 2021, there were 1,884 admissions to ICU among confirmed cases of Covid-19. File picture

Forty women who were either pregnant or post-partum were admitted to intensive care with Covid-19 since the start of the pandemic.

The figures come from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC), which found that from March 1, 2020, to September 30, 2021, some 1,884 admissions to ICU among confirmed cases of Covid-19 were reported.

The HPSC found that 64% were males and 36% were females. Among the female cases admitted to ICU with confirmed Covid-19 during this time period, 28 were reported as being pregnant and a further 12 cases were reported to be less than six weeks post-partum at the time of admission to intensive care.

The majority of admissions to ICU in pregnant and post-partum women occurred since January 2021.

Of the pregnant cases, six were in the second trimester of pregnancy and 16 were in the third trimester, the HPSC found. For the remaining six cases, the trimester of pregnancy was unknown.

In the 40 cases, the median age was 32 years with an age range of 18 to 44 years. One-third of the cases had an underlying medical condition.

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Some 98% of the cases were discharged to a ward or high dependency unit following their admission to intensive care. At the time of the report from the HPSC, one of the cases remains in ICU.

The median length of stay in ICU for those who were discharged was eight days. The HPSC found that low vaccination rates were seen in the group.

97% of the 35 admitted to ICU since January 2021 “had not received Covid-19 vaccine or were not registered as vaccinated on Covax”. One case was reported to be partially vaccinated.

On vaccines, the HPSC said: “The National Immunisation Guidelines recommend Covid-19 vaccine during pregnancy and also state that there is now a growing body of evidence on the safety and effectiveness of Covid-19 vaccination, in both animal and human studies, clearly indicating that the benefits of vaccination outweigh any known or potential risks of Covid-19 vaccination during pregnancy.

“It is recommended that pregnant women talk with their GP and obstetric caregivers in relation to Covid-19 vaccination during pregnancy.”