Montreal hospital delivers baby to unvaccinated mother with COVID-19, who is now on life support
A woman who is critically ill with COVID-19 and was pregnant is now at the MUHC on a type of life support, after doctors at the Jewish General Hospital decided it was safest to deliver her baby prematurely, CTV News has learned.
The baby, born about two months before the due date, was transferred to the same health centre and is being cared for in the pediatric intensive care unit at the Montreal Children’s Hospital.
The woman first arrived at the Jewish General Hospital a few weeks ago and after being admitted to the ICU was soon placed on a ventilator, according to a source within Montreal’s health-care community who was not authorized to speak publicly but who told the story to CTV News.
Information provided to the hospital indicated the woman was unvaccinated, the professional said. CTV was unable to speak with the family.
Despite the intensive care provided, her overall condition did not improve and her oxygen levels worsened.
As a result, after about a week, a decision was made to perform a caesarian section on the intubated woman for her benefit and the child’s, even though the woman was only 30 weeks pregnant.
As her health continued to deteriorate, she was transferred to the MUHC where she could be placed on ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation), according to two additional sources, which is a type of therapy that goes well beyond ventilation.
Once a patient is connected to the tubes and machine, the ECMO system adds oxygen to the blood and pumps it through the body, replacing the heart and lungs.
The treatment is used for a select group of patients and is seen as a last resort.
PREGNANT AND UNVACCINATED: SIX TIMES HIGHER RISK OF ICU ADMISSION
“I’m very sad to hear this story,” said Dr. Isabelle Boucoiran, an obstetrician-gynecologist at Ste-Justine Hospital, who is also a member of the infectious diseases committee of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada (SOGC).
Boucoiran is not surprised to hear about the case, however, given the amount of time she still spends trying to convince about half the pregnant patients in her clinic who are hesitant, to get fully vaccinated.
“Yes, there are still adverse outcomes related to COVID and pregnancy, people need to be aware of that and act on that,” the specialist said.
“I’m not frustrated yet, sometimes I’m tired, “ she said.
Boucoiran said it’s not about assigning blame, but rather about figuring out how to get across the message to each pregnant woman who walks through the door.
To accomplish that she makes use of all the strong information out there now, on safety, efficacy and the considerable risks of being unvaccinated.
“Compared to women of the same age, being pregnant means a six times higher risk of being admitted to the ICU,” said Boucoiran, referring to the latest Canadian surveillance data that will be published within the next couple of weeks.
The elevated risks associated with COVID-19 infection also include an increased need for oxygen, hospitalization, and a significant increase in premature birth.
“There are also some cases of maternal deaths reported in Canada,” Boucoiran said.
Being adequately vaccinated can help prevent the dangers dramatically, she said.
“The vaccine works in pregnancy well, and women have less risk of severe COVID so it’s effective,” she said, adding that pregnant women have the same rate of side effects as anybody else. "There are basically no cases of adverse outcomes in [pregnant] women who have been vaccinated appropriately.”
That data refers to women who are two weeks past their second dose. The same safety profile applies to “neonates,” (newborns).
“So this is really reassuring,” she said, “and is what has been seen in other countries.”
VACCINE HESITANCY: ‘DON’T FEEL THEY’RE AT RISK’
Among the reasons women in her clinic give for not wanting to get vaccinated, fears about side effects and concerns about the effects on the baby’s health top the list.
Boucoiran has witnessed, however, that many of the women don’t think they're at risk for catching the virus.
“Because they’re young, their husband or partner works from home. But the truth is especially with the Omicron variant, everybody’s at risk,” she said.
Pregnant women are no more likely to become infected than anyone else, but the Omicron variant is so contagious, she said, that even simple interactions with a delivery person at the front door, or with other children who attend daycare, the doctor suggested, make them vulnerable.
When that vulnerability combines with the physiological changes that occur in pregnancy, the risk of complications shoots up.
“We know the risk is mostly in the second and third trimester…related to [breathing] and also some immunity changes that explain this risk,” she said
She said it’s “difficult" at this point in the pandemic when she can’t get through to patients to whom she’s giving her best advice.
She says she tries “to stay focused on the topic because I think we can still improve the outcome of pregnancy in Canada and we can still improve our vaccination rate.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Guilty: Trump becomes first former U.S. president convicted of felony crimes
Donald Trump became the first former American president to be convicted of felony crimes Thursday as a New York jury found him guilty of all 34 charges in a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election through a hush money payment to a porn actor who said the two had sex.
Can Trump come to Canada now that he's a convicted felon?
A Canadian immigration lawyer says now that Donald Trump is a convicted felon, he is technically barred from crossing the border into Canada.
Montreal tech billionaire charged with several sex offences
Robert Miller was charged Thursday with several sexual assault charges after Montreal police reopened an investigation into the tech billionaire.
'All we need is a plug-in and a sink': B.C. helicopter charity delivers health care to remote Canada
Imagine your dentist arriving to help you via chopper. That is the aim of Helicopters Without Borders, a registered charity in B.C. specializing in bringing health care to remote communities, the sort of places you can only access quickly by air or water.
Aurora borealis returning to night skies across Canada this Friday: NOAA
If you missed the brilliant displays of the aurora borealis over North America on May 10, you may have another chance to see them on Friday night.
A pair enjoyed pricey meals and bolted when it was time to pay. Their dine and dash ended in jail
A Welsh couple who dined out on pricey meals and bolted when the bill came is now paying the price, behind bars.
'Why didn't they stop?' Mom asks of driver in hit-and-run crash that killed son
The mother of a 13-year-old boy who was killed in a hit-and-run in Edmonton is begging the driver to come forward.
Shell investigating a 'potential cybersecurity incident'
Oil and gas giant Shell says it is investigating a possible cybersecurity 'incident.'
Doug Ford suggests immigrants behind Jewish school shooting
Ontario Premier Doug Ford suggested immigrants are to blame for the shooting of an empty Jewish school in Toronto over the weekend, despite police saying they have little information on the suspects.