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COVID-19: women with diabetes and hypertension during pregnancy

02 November 2020
Comment
02 November 2020
Volume 28 · Issue 11

Abstract

Midwives should be prepared to create individualised care plans, share data and liase with other departments, to improve maternal and fetal outcomes for pregnant women with these conditions

COVID-19 is a worldwide pandemic and poses a significant challenge to the care of pregnant women, especially pregnancies complicated by diabetes and hypertension. These pregnancies are associated with increased adverse pregnancy outcomes for both mother and child and require further care (Gu et al, 2019). Notably, the first maternal mortality in the UK was a woman with type 2 diabetes (Ahmed et al, 2020). A multi-disciplinary approach is critical to the provision of optimal care to these patients. All clinical staff involved in the care of these patients should receive adequate training, including in the use of personal protective equipment (PPE).

The current outbreak of COVID-19 is sweeping across the world and having a devastating impact on healthcare systems globally. Increasing evidence shows that hypertension and diabetes are among the most significant comorbidities in patients with COVID-19 and these two conditions are also associated with increased morbidity and mortality (Yang et al, 2020; Guan et al, 2020). Therefore, pregnant women with diabetes and hypertension who contract COVID-19 would be at even higher risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes. Since diabetes and hypertension (pre-existing or pregnancy-induced) are common complications in pregnancy, healthcare professionals will face extra challenges with these patients.

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