association between corticosteroid administration in pregnant women with covid-19 and neonatal outcomes

Background: the evidence for the effect of corticosteroid administration on neonates in pregnant women who tested positive for covid-19 is rare. this study aims to evaluate the effect of the administration of corticosteroids on pregnant women with covid-19 on neonatal metabolic outcomes of hypoglycemia and hyperbilirubinemia. methods: the present retrospective cohort study was conducted on pregnant women with covid-19 referred to mousavi hospital in zanjan, iran in 2020. we compared post-delivery complications in women who had received corticosteroids with a control group. the data were extracted from the medical records of the patients by a resident of the gynecology. the chi-square test was used to compare the rate of hyperbilirubinemia and hypoglycemia between groups. results: of a total of 71 investigated patients, only 32 received non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (nsaids),. the mean age of the patients was 29.77±6.87 years and there was not a significant difference between the two groups in terms of age, bmi, education, blood sugar, bilirubin, neonate weight, and 1 and 5-minute apgar score (p>0.05). in the corticosteroid-receiving group, a significantly higher rate of hypoglycemia (37.5% vs. 7.69%, p=0.002) and hyperbilirubinemia (25% vs. 5.13%, p=0.02) was reported. conclusion: the results suggested that the administration of corticosteroids as a treatment modality for pregnant women with covid-19 is associated with an increased rate of neonatal hypoglycemia and hyperbilirubinemia. therefore, glycemic control is necessary for neonates born from pregnant women with covid-19 exposed to corticosteroids during the pregnancy.