Prolonged SARS-CoV-2 Viral Shedding in Pregnancy and Risk of Extended inPatient Isolation: A Case Report

Author Info

Emad A Elsamadicy Mary E Burgoyne Naomi Hauser Andrea Desai

Corresponding Author

Emad A Elsamadicy
Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

A B S T R A C T

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus responsible for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), continues to challenge healthcare systems worldwide, and further investigation is required to determine its effects on the pregnant population. Prolonged viral shedding (>15-33 days), especially without appropriate testing guidelines, can subject admitted patients to unnecessarily long isolation, which influences emotional, physical, and clinical aspects of their antepartum course. We report a young, primigravida Haitian female admitted to the antepartum service at 22 weeks of gestation with preterm premature rupture of membranes (PPROM), who remained admitted in isolation for over 6 weeks due to persistent positive SARS-CoV-2 testing. This case highlights the importance of establishing testing guidelines to prevent unnecessary isolation, which has negative consequences for patient care. There is an urgent need for updated guidelines for the duration of isolation based on the presence of the viable virus.

Article Info

Article Type

Case Report

Publication history

Received: Tue 21, Jul 2020
Accepted: Wed 05, Aug 2020
Published: Fri 14, Aug 2020

Copyright

© 2023 Emad A Elsamadicy . This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Hosting by Science Repository.
DOI: 10.31487/j.CROGR.2020.03.01