Systematic screening for SARS-CoV-2 in pregnant women admitted for delivery in a Portuguese maternity

Objectives: The burden of undocumented SARS-Cov-2 infections in Portuguese pregnant women is unknown. At our institution, routine COVID-19 testing was implemented from 19th of March on to all pregnant women who were admitted for delivery. The purpose of the study was to estimate the SARS-CoV-2 infection rate in our obstetric population admitted for delivery. Mathods: Between 19th March and May 4th, 184 pregnant women were screened for SARS-CoV-2 infection upon admission. Results: Eleven women were positive for SARS-CoV-2, corresponding to a global prevalence of 6.0%. Of these, only two reported symptoms at admission. The prevalence of asymptomatic infection was 4.9%. We report a lower rate of positive cass than other studies. Eighty-two percent of our cases had no symptoms at admission. Conclusions: The proportion of asymptomatic infection highlights the importance of universal laboratory screening for all women admitted for delivery as opposed to symptom-based screening.