Singaporean woman gives birth to baby with COVID-19 antibodies, here's everything about it

A Singaporean woman who had contracted COVID-19 when she was pregnant has given birth to a baby with the antibodies against the highly-infectious novel coronavirus. Even though it has offered the scientists a new clue if the infection can be transferred from the mother to child, it still remains unclear if the antibodies found in the baby would work against COVID-19. As per the Strait Times report on November 29, Celine Ng-Chan gave birth to her second child earlier this month and the paediatrician said that he has antibodies against SARS-CoV-2.

Were they transferred or the baby developed it?

However, the doctors are not sure if the antibodies were passed from the mother or the baby had developed them for him or herself. Moreover, a paper was published in October by the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases said that all 11 infants who were born to women with COVID-19 in Wuhan, China had some levels of IgG antibodies at birth and five had IgM antibodies. IgM is the initial antibody developed in response to an infection but is usually not transferred from mother to the fetus but IgG is smaller and can be transferred passively. 

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What do doctors suspect?

Celine Ng-Chan, who was mildly ill with COVID-19 and was discharged in two-and-a-half weeks, told the paper that “My doctor suspects I have transferred my COVID-19 antibodies to him during my pregnancy”. The 31-year-old mother and the National University Hospital (NUH), where she gave birth and KK Women's and Children's Hospital (KKH) are already a part of a larger study involving several public hospitals in Singapore to dig deeper into how COVID-19 may potentially affect the pregnant women and their babies.

Celine Ng-Chan now part of a study

The paper also quoted NUH spokesperson saying that the authorities are hoping to find from the ongoing study that can help medical professionals to formulate a guide for the care of the affected pregnant women and their infants to safeguard their health. Celine Ng-Chan and her newly born son are also included in the study. She told the paper, “I agreed to be part of the study as I believe it is very important so that we can find out more and fight the virus better.”

What has WHO said about it?

While the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said that it is unknown if a pregnant woman with COVID-18 can pass the virus to her fetus or the baby during pregnancy or delivery, there is not a single case yet in the world where the coronavirus was transferred in such a manner. The active virus has not been found in the samples of the fluid around the baby or in the womb.

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