Severe Postpartum Hemorrhage in an Asymptomatic COVID-19 Patient: A Call to Be on Guard

Abstract

Pradip Kalsar,1 Shreya Datta,2 Arbabasu Kalsar,2 Brian Kipkoech Kirui,3 Andrew Marvin Kanyike4 1Department of Gynecology, Mal Superspeciality Hospital, Mal, West Bengal, India; 2Department of Gynecology, Calcutta National Medical College, Kolkata, India; 3Department of Midwifery & Gender, School of Nursing, Moi University, Nairobi, Kenya; 4Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Busitema University, Mbale, UgandaCorrespondence: Andrew Marvin KanyikeDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Busitema University, Mbale, UgandaEmail [email protected]: Postpartum hemorrhage (PPH), the loss of more than 500 mL of blood following childbirth, is a leading cause of maternal mortality worldwide. The current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has strained health-care systems globally. Pregnant women are a vulnerable group at a high risk of severe infection with COVID-19 due to the physiological changes in their immune state. Although the infection can be asymptomatic, severe COVID-19 infection is associated with respiratory distress, fever and coagulopathies that can complicate an already hypercoagulable pregnancy state. There is a dearth of existing literature regarding the complications of COVID-19 infection during pregnancy, and much is yet to be known about this rapidly evolving pandemic. In our case report, we received a 23-year-old gravida 2 para 1 woman who was COVID-19 positive but asymptomatic; she presented to the obstetric department with labor pains which progressed to severe postpartum hemorrhage and development of mild respiratory distress.Keywords: postpartum hemorrhage, COVID-19, asymptomatic

Keywords

• postpartum hemorrhage
• covid-19
• asymptomatic