Exposure to COVID-19 in pregnancy linked to adverse outcomes in infants

Babies exposed to COVID-19 in utero may be predisposed to altered brain volumes, impaired cognition and internalizing emotional problems, a study found. Researchers enrolled 39 mother-baby pairs in Washington, D.C., who had been exposed to COVID-19 during pregnancy and were unvaccinated and compared them with 103 pairs from before the pandemic. Infants underwent imaging at 2 weeks old and received developmental assessments at two years old. Nearly 52% of toddlers in the COVID-19 group were at high risk for developmental delays compared with 14% of toddlers in the pre-pandemic group. Those exposed to COVID-19 had reduced ability to understand written and spoken language and were at high risk for behavioral difficulties (25% versus 11%). (CIDRAP news release, 1/5/26)