{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,9]],"date-time":"2026-05-09T21:38:15Z","timestamp":1778362695129,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":41,"publisher":"Georg Thieme Verlag KG","issue":"S 02","content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Am J Perinatol"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2020,9]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>In spite of the increasing, accumulating knowledge on the novel pandemic coronavirus severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), questions on the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) infection transmission from mothers to fetuses or neonates during pregnancy and peripartum period remain pending and have not been addressed so far. SARS-CoV-2, a RNA single-stranded virus, has been detected in the amniotic fluid, in the cord blood and in the placentas of the infected women. In the light of these findings, the theoretical risk of intrauterine infection for fetuses, or of peripartum infection occurring during delivery for neonates, has a biological plausibility. The extent of this putative risk might, however, vary during the different stages of pregnancy, owing to several variables (physiological modifications of the placenta, virus receptors' expression, or delivery route). This brief review provides an overview of the current evidence in this area. Further data, based on national and international multicenter registries, are needed not only to clearly assess the extent of the risk for vertical transmission, but also to ultimately establish solid guidelines and consistent recommendations.<\/jats:p><jats:p>\n            Key Points\n          <\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1055\/s-0040-1714346","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2020,8,5]],"date-time":"2020-08-05T22:39:11Z","timestamp":1596667151000},"page":"S31-S38","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":41,"special_numbering":"S","title":["Vertical Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19): Are Hypotheses More than Evidences?"],"prefix":"10.1055","volume":"37","author":[{"given":"Cinzia","family":"Auriti","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Department of Medical and Surgical Neonatology, \u201cBambino Ges\u00f9\u201d Children's Hospital IRCCS, Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Domenico Umberto","family":"De Rose","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Department of Medical and Surgical Neonatology, \u201cBambino Ges\u00f9\u201d Children's Hospital IRCCS, Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Chryssoula","family":"Tzialla","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, IRCCS Foundation Policlinico \u201cSan Matteo,\u201d Pavia, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Leonardo","family":"Caforio","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Fetal Medicine and Surgery Unit, Department of Medical and Surgical Neonatology, \u201cBambino Ges\u00f9\u201d Children's Hospital IRCCS, Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Matilde","family":"Ciccia","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Department of Women's and Children's Health, Maggiore Hospital, Bologna, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Paolo","family":"Manzoni","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pediatrics and Neonatology, University Hospital Degli Infermi, Biella, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Mauro","family":"Stronati","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, IRCCS Foundation Policlinico \u201cSan Matteo,\u201d Pavia, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"194","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2020,8,5]]},"reference":[{"issue":"08","key":"ref1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"E2932","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph17082932","article-title":"Airborne transmission route of COVID-19: why 2 meters\/6 feet of inter-personal distance could not be enough","volume":"17","author":"L Setti","year":"2020","journal-title":"Int J Environ Res Public Health"},{"key":"ref2","first-page":"1843","article-title":"Detection of SARS-CoV-2 in different types of clinical specimens","volume":"323","author":"W Wang","year":"2020","journal-title":"JAMA"},{"key":"ref3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"809","DOI":"10.1016\/S0140-6736(20)30360-3","article-title":"Clinical characteristics and intrauterine vertical transmission potential of COVID-19 infection in nine pregnant women: a retrospective review of medical records","volume":"395","author":"H Chen","year":"2020","journal-title":"Lancet"},{"key":"ref4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"104","DOI":"10.3389\/fped.2020.00104","article-title":"Infants born to mothers with a new coronavirus (COVID-19)","volume":"8","author":"Y Chen","year":"2020","journal-title":"Front Pediatr"},{"issue":"02","key":"ref5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"193","DOI":"10.1007\/s11684-020-0772-y","article-title":"Clinical characteristics of 19 neonates born to mothers with COVID-19","volume":"14","author":"W Liu","year":"2020","journal-title":"Front Med"},{"key":"ref6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.cmi.2020.05.027","article-title":"Excretion of SARS-CoV-2 in human breastmilk samples","author":"S Costa","year":"2020","journal-title":"Clin Microbiol Infect"},{"key":"ref7","first-page":"E1","article-title":"Interpreting diagnostic tests for SARS-CoV-2","volume":"2020","author":"N Sethuraman","year":"2020","journal-title":"JAMA"},{"key":"ref8","first-page":"1846","article-title":"Possible vertical transmission of SARS-CoV-2 from an infected mother to her newborn","volume":"323","author":"L Dong","year":"2020","journal-title":"JAMA"},{"key":"ref9","first-page":"1848","article-title":"Antibodies in infants born to mothers with COVID-19 pneumonia","volume":"323","author":"H Zeng","year":"2020","journal-title":"JAMA"},{"key":"ref10","first-page":"1788","article-title":"Can SARS-CoV-2 infection be acquired in utero? More definitive evidence is needed","volume":"323","author":"D W Kimberlin","year":"2020","journal-title":"JAMA"},{"issue":"06","key":"ref11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1335","DOI":"10.3201\/eid2606.200287","article-title":"Lack of vertical transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, China","volume":"26","author":"Y Li","year":"2020","journal-title":"Emerg Infect Dis"},{"key":"ref12","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1093\/cid\/ciaa200","article-title":"A case of 2019 novel coronavirus in a pregnant woman with preterm delivery","author":"X Wang","year":"2020","journal-title":"Clin Infect Dis"},{"key":"ref13","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ajogmf.2020.100133","article-title":"Detection of SARS-CoV-2 in placental and fetal membrane samples","author":"C A Penfield","year":"2020","journal-title":"Am J Obstet Gynecol MFM"},{"key":"ref14","first-page":"100145","article-title":"Vertical transmission of COVID-19: SARS-CoV-2 RNA on the fetal side of the placenta in pregnancies with COVID-19 positive mothers and neonates at birth","volume":"2020","author":"L Patan\u00e8","year":"2020","journal-title":"Am J Obstet Gynecol MFM"},{"issue":"01","key":"ref15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"56","DOI":"10.1186\/s13052-020-0820-x","article-title":"Novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in newborns and infants: what we know so far","volume":"46","author":"D U De Rose","year":"2020","journal-title":"Ital J Pediatr"},{"key":"ref16","first-page":"1824","article-title":"Pharmacologic treatments for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): a review","volume":"323","author":"J M Sanders","year":"2020","journal-title":"JAMA"},{"issue":"04","key":"ref17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"335","DOI":"10.1016\/S2468-1253(20)30048-0","article-title":"Enteric involvement of coronaviruses: is faecal-oral transmission of SARS-CoV-2 possible?","volume":"5","author":"C Yeo","year":"2020","journal-title":"Lancet Gastroenterol Hepatol"},{"key":"ref18","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1093\/molehr\/gaaa030","article-title":"Potential influences of COVID-19\/ACE2 on female reproductive system 2020","author":"J Yan","journal-title":"OSF Preprints"},{"issue":"04","key":"ref19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e0230295","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0230295","article-title":"The SARS-CoV-2 receptor ACE2 expression of maternal-fetal interface and fetal organs by single-cell transcriptome study","volume":"15","author":"M Li","year":"2020","journal-title":"PLoS One"},{"key":"ref20","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1002\/uog.22088","article-title":"Effects of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on maternal, perinatal and neonatal outcomes: a systematic review","author":"J Juan","year":"2020","journal-title":"Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol"},{"key":"ref21","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ajogmf.2020.100134","article-title":"Clinical course of severe and critical COVID-19 in hospitalized pregnancies: a US cohort study","author":"R A Pierce-Williams","year":"2020","journal-title":"Am J Obstet Gynecol MFM"},{"key":"ref22","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/1471-0528.16278","article-title":"Vaginal delivery in SARS-CoV-2 infected pregnant women in Northern Italy: a retrospective analysis","author":"E Ferrazzi","year":"2020","journal-title":"BJOG An Int J Obstet Gynaecol"},{"issue":"05","key":"ref23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"347","DOI":"10.1089\/bfm.2020.0095","article-title":"Managing COVID-19-positive maternal-infant dyads: an Italian experience","volume":"15","author":"G Salvatori","year":"2020","journal-title":"Breastfeed Med"},{"key":"ref24","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/mcn.13032","article-title":"SARS-CoV-2 and human milk: what is the evidence?","author":"K A Lackey","year":"2020","journal-title":"Matern Child Nutr"},{"issue":"24","key":"ref25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"E647","DOI":"10.1503\/cmaj.200821","article-title":"Probable congenital SARS-CoV-2 infection in a neonate born to a woman with active SARS-CoV-2 infection","volume":"192","author":"M Kirtsman","year":"2020","journal-title":"CMAJ"},{"key":"ref26","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1093\/cid\/ciaa673","article-title":"Detectable severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in human breast milk of a mildly symptomatic patient with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)","author":"P CK Tam","year":"2020","journal-title":"Clin Infect Dis"},{"key":"ref27","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1757","DOI":"10.1016\/S0140-6736(20)31181-8","article-title":"Detection of SARS-CoV-2 in human breastmilk","volume":"395","author":"R Gro\u00df","year":"2020","journal-title":"Lancet"},{"issue":"03","key":"ref28","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e13010","DOI":"10.1111\/mcn.13010","article-title":"Breastfeeding and coronavirus disease-2019: ad interim indications of the Italian Society of Neonatology endorsed by the Union of European Neonatal & Perinatal Societies","volume":"16","author":"R Davanzo","year":"2020","journal-title":"Matern Child Nutr"},{"key":"ref30","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1002\/pd.5713","article-title":"Preterm delivery in pregnant woman with critical COVID-19 pneumonia and vertical transmission","author":"M Zamaniyan","year":"2020","journal-title":"Prenat Diagn"},{"issue":"04","key":"ref31","first-page":"237","article-title":"First case of neonatal infection due to COVID-19 in Spain","volume":"92","author":"C Alonso Diaz","year":"2020","journal-title":"An Pediatr (Engl Ed)"},{"issue":"08","key":"ref32","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"861","DOI":"10.1055\/s-0040-1710050","article-title":"Severe COVID-19 during pregnancy and possible vertical transmission","volume":"37","author":"M C Alzamora","year":"2020","journal-title":"Am J Perinatol"},{"key":"ref33","first-page":"1","article-title":"Severe acute respiratory syndrome transmission in neonates born to mothers with coronavirus disease 2019","volume":"136","author":"X Hu","year":"2020","journal-title":"Obstet Gynecol"},{"key":"ref34","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ajogmf.2020.100135","article-title":"Placental abruption in a twin pregnancy at 32 week's gestation complicated by COVID-19, without vertical transmission to the babies","author":"K Kuhrt","year":"2020","journal-title":"Am J Obstet Gynecol MFM"},{"key":"ref35","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1002\/jmv.25927","article-title":"Asymptomatic COVID-19 infection in late pregnancy indicated no vertical transmission","author":"D Lu","year":"2020","journal-title":"J Med Virol"},{"key":"ref36","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e00220","DOI":"10.1016\/j.crwh.2020.e00220","article-title":"Novel coronavirus-related acute respiratory distress syndrome in a patient with twin pregnancy: a case report","volume":"27","author":"H Mehta","year":"2020","journal-title":"Case Rep Womens Health"},{"issue":"06","key":"ref37","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"476","DOI":"10.1016\/S2352-4642(20)30140-1","article-title":"COVID-19 in a 26-week preterm neonate","volume":"4","author":"F Piersigilli","year":"2020","journal-title":"Lancet Child Adolesc Health"},{"key":"ref38","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.bja.2020.04.066","article-title":"Evidence of mother-newborn infection with COVID-19","author":"M Sun","year":"2020","journal-title":"Br J Anaesth"},{"key":"ref39","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1002\/jmv.25857","article-title":"Vaginal delivery report of a healthy neonate born to a convalescent mother with COVID-19","author":"X Xiong","year":"2020","journal-title":"J Med Virol"},{"key":"ref40","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ajog.2020.04.014","article-title":"Coronavirus disease 2019 in pregnant women: a report based on 116 cases","author":"J Yan","year":"2020","journal-title":"Am J Obstet Gynecol"},{"key":"ref41","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"104356","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jcv.2020.104356","article-title":"Clinical characteristics and risk assessment of newborns born to mothers with COVID-19","volume":"127","author":"P Yang","year":"2020","journal-title":"J Clin Virol"},{"key":"ref42","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1001\/jamapediatrics.2020.0878","article-title":"Neonatal early-onset infection with SARS-CoV-2 in 33 neonates born to mothers with COVID-19 in Wuhan, China","author":"L Zeng","year":"2020","journal-title":"JAMA Pediatr"}],"container-title":["American Journal of Perinatology"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"http:\/\/www.thieme-connect.de\/products\/ejournals\/pdf\/10.1055\/s-0040-1714346.pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2020,9,29]],"date-time":"2020-09-29T23:44:59Z","timestamp":1601423099000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"http:\/\/www.thieme-connect.de\/DOI\/DOI?10.1055\/s-0040-1714346"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2020,8,5]]},"references-count":41,"journal-issue":{"issue":"S 02","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2020,9,8]]},"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2020,9]]}},"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1055\/s-0040-1714346","relation":{},"ISSN":["0735-1631","1098-8785"],"issn-type":[{"value":"0735-1631","type":"print"},{"value":"1098-8785","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2020,8,5]]}}}