Has the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic affected obstetric management and pregnancy complications in healthy women?

Abstract

Objective: We aimed to investigate the effect of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on obstetric management and pregnancy complications in healthy pregnant women without SARS-CoV-2 infection.
 
 Methods: A total of 750 pregnant women who delivered singleton infants after 11 March 2020, the date when the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a pandemic, formed the study group, while 750 pregnant women who gave birth before this date formed the control group. The study included pregnant women who were found to have no infection clinically or by SARS-CoV-2 serology testing. The groups were compared in terms of demographic characteristics, type and duration of delivery, gestational age, indication for cesarean section, and pregnancy complications.
 
 Results: The median±IQR gestational age at delivery was 38±2 weeks in pregnant women who gave birth during the pandemic and 39±1 weeks in women who gave birth before the pandemic (p