April 9, 2021

Neonatal Outcomes during the COVID-19 Pandemic in New York City

Category: Article Summary

Topic: Clinical Characteristics and Health Care Setting

Keywords (Tags): clinical characteristics, pregnancy

• A single-center study of singleton births to mothers without SARS-CoV-2 infection who were residents of New York City (N=43,963) found that changes in the rate of preterm births and neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admissions in the 3 months before and after the stay-at-home orders in response to the COVID-19 pandemic were issued were not statistically different from changes during the same time periods for the years 2012 to 2019. However, preterm births and NICU admissions decreased significantly after the phase one reopening on June 8, 2020. The authors suggest these decreases may reflect changes in obstetric care and availability of health services, reduced exposure to non-COVID-19 infections, better air quality, and increased hygienic practices.

Richter et al. (Apr 7, 2021). Neonatal Outcomes during the COVID-19 Pandemic in New York City. Pediatric Research. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-021-01513-7