Introduction
The novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 is responsible for severe acute respiratory syndromes and has rapidly spread worldwide. The World Health Organization (WHO) recognised COVID-19 as a pandemic on March 11th, 2020 (1).
Prevention and control of COVID-19 infections are major concerns for pregnant women. The evidence currently available does not support SARS-CoV-2 virus vertical transmission (2,3) and suggests that pregnant women are not at increased risk of severe adverse maternal and neonatal outcomes (4,5). This situation is in contrast with previous studies showing that in pregnant women both H1N1 flu and previous Coronavirus infections, such as SARS and MERS, were associated with a higher risk of severe viral respiratory infections and with adverse maternal and neonatal outcomes when compared to the general population (3,6,7).
To enhance scarce data from previous studies and boost research with a more in-depth assessment of the maternal and neonatal effects of SARS-CoV-2, the Italian Obstetric Surveillance System (ItOSS) (8) has launched a national population-based study. The project collects information on all SARS-CoV-2 confirmed cases in women receiving in or out patient hospital care during pregnancy or within 42 days from any pregnancy outcome.
In this time of uncertainty, the hope is that this project can provide timely information to support health operators dealing with clinical and organisational assistance of pregnancies complicated by COVID-19 in Italy and other countries facing the epidemic, today and in the forthcoming months.
The data collected and analysed distinguish different groups of women affected by COVID-19: women who reported to a hospital while pregnant; women hospitalised for miscarriage, voluntary termination, or to give birth; women hospitalised within 42 days of the outcome of the pregnancy. This distinction, with the wealth of details made available, facilitates a fuller and more in-depth picture of how to support women during pregnancy, childbirth, and postnatal care. This paper describes the women with confirmed COVID-19 infection admitted to hospital during pregnancy for out or inpatient care, their symptoms and the course of the SARS-CoV-2 virus as well as its treatment.