Apollo Doctors perform a miracle by ensuring recovery of a Covid afflicted critical pregnant woman & her newborn!

Hyderabad, August 2020: A team of doctors at Apollo Hospitals, accomplished a near miracle by saving a mother and child, from a highly critical health condition. The mother into the 7th month of pregnancy, developed Covid and had to be treated on the ventilator, also to save the baby a pre-term delivery was performed on her despite the mother’s condition. Both were discharged hail and healthy. This was a first of its kind care in this part of the world, where a 7-month preterm baby was delivered from a mother undergoing infertility care while being ventilated for Covid.

The 34-year-old patient, Mrs. Manjula married for the last seven years, was undergoing infertility treatment and was into the seventh month of pregnancy. Being a precious delivery for the couple and were longing for a baby, they were seeking the guidance of Dr Sharmila, Sr Consultant Pediatrician at Apollo Hospitals, to avoid later stage medical complications. However recently along with the other members of her family, the mother got infected with Covid and was brought to the hospital on July 15th in a very critical condition.

On admission, her condition deteriorated rapidly, and saturation levels were dismally low necessitating ventilator management. There was little hope of her survival medically, as nearly 90% of pregnant women needing ventilation, breath their last or end up delivering stillborn preterm babies.

The medical team too had its set of challenges specific to this case:

1. Complex hemodynamics of pregnancy and severe Covid infection with high viral load, pulling the medical team at high risk of infection.

2. Difficulty in ventilation and the inability to make the patient sleep on her belly, which is a necessity for Covid patients and is done for non-pregnant patients

3. Difficulty in performing surgery with the protective (PPE) gear.

4. Difficulty in assessing and reviving the baby at birth and the PPE not allowing proper assessment and delicate care babies’ need.

The Doctors took these challenges in their stride and were keen to save both the mother and baby, but on a priority wanted to save the mother. During the course of the treatment, the mother stopped responding and chances of her survival seemed slim, the team decided to retrieve at least the baby before the mother succumbs. The baby was delivered on July 17th by operating on the mother, while sustaining her on the ventilator. But the baby too was found to be ill and not responding to resuscitation. The team revived the baby’s heart function with medication, but the risk of it not surviving continued to be high. The baby later developed a bloodstream infection and was treated. The baby gradually recovered, she started responding to the treatment and got better by the day. The fully recovered baby was discharged today. In the meantime, the mother saw a phenomenal recovery and was discharged on August 10th, 2020.