Evaluation of the lymphocyte population and placental inflammation in pregnant patients with moderate or severe COVID-19 forms – a secondary analysis
Authors:   Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Medicine, Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iaşi, Romania, Tănase Adina Elena , Mogoş Raluca Anamaria ,   Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Medicine, Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iaşi, Romania; Doctoral School, Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iaşi, Romania, Mogoş Simona Juliette ,   Department of Endocrinology, Faculty of Medicine, Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iaşi, Romania, Bran Ştefana Raluca ,   PhD Student, Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iaşi, Romania, Gîscă Tudor Cătălin ,   Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Medicine, Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iaşi, Romania; Doctoral School, Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iaşi, Romania, Solomon-Condriuc Iustina Petra ,   Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Medicine, Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iaşi, Romania; Doctoral School, Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iaşi, Romania, Costea Claudia Florida ,   Department of Surgery II, Faculty of Medicine, Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iaşi, Romania, Tănase Gabriel Valentin ,   Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care, Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iaşi, Romania, Cucu Andrei Ionuţ ,   Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Biological Sciences, Ştefan cel Mare University of Suceava, Romania; 2nd Neurosurgery Clinic, Prof. Dr. Nicolae Oblu Emergency Clinical Hospital, Iaşi, Romania
Published: November 2024

Aim: In this secondary analysis, we aimed to characterize the lymphocytes population and placental inflammation in pregnant women with moderate and severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) forms. Patients, Materials and Methods: In the analysis of this prospective evaluation, we included 26 pregnant women at term with moderate and severe COVID-19 forms that were evaluated in a tertiary maternity center in a one-year timeframe. Clinical data, along with blood immunophenotyping results and placental histopathological examinations were comparatively evaluated between two study groups depending on the COVID-19 severity: Group 1 (moderate COVID-19, n=14 patients) and Group 2 (severe COVID-19, n=12 patients). Results: Pregnant patients with severe COVID-19 presented significantly lower total amount of lymphocytes (p 0.001), T-lymphocytes (p=0.009), cluster of differentiation (CD)4+ T-cells (p=0.002), B-lymphocytes (p=0.001). Also, the number of CD4+ T-cells (p=0.01), CD8+ T-cells (p=0.02) and B-lymphocytes (p=0.002) was lower enough for cases with severe COVID-19. Conclusions: Lymphocytopenia could be a useful hematological marker for risk stratification of COVID-19 in pregnant women at term. A vertical transmission of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) cannot be confirmed in this study, mainly because of the limited sample size and short timeframe between infection and birth.