Mumbai: Every cloud has a silver lining, including the colossal cloud of gloom and worry that has hung over almost every hospital across Mumbai, in the form of the rising number of coronavirus cases. On Sunday, it was the BYL Nair Hospital, Mumbai Central, a dedicated Covid hospital, which was the bearer of some really glad tidings, claiming 300-plus 'safe' births of babies born to Covidpositive mothers. Until Sunday morning, 306 babies had been born to Covid-positive mothers at Nair hospital. Doctors said most of these babies had not contracted the virus so far, and of the 306 mothers who had given birth in the last two months, 254 had been cured and discharged.
The hospital had been converted into an exclusive Covid-19 facility in April. Since then, it has catered not only to pregnant women from the nearby areas, but many other patients transferred from far-off suburbs after they tested positive for corona. On April 14, the hospital helped deliver the first baby to be born to a Covid-positive mother. Doctors said utmost care is taken at every step of such deliveries, such as wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) during the delivery and disinfecting the delivery areas afterwards, while also keeping the mothers and babies together.
Dr Sushma Malik, Head, Department of Neonatal and Pediatrics, Nodal Officer for Covid Maternity, said, "Even if the mother of the unborn baby is infected with Covid-19, the unborn baby does not get the infection. However, it can be transmitted through contact with the mother after birth. According to the medical treatment protocol, babies born to mothers infected with Covid are tested for infection 24 hours after birth."
According to Malik, of the 306 infants born in the last two months, 10 newborns had tested positive. However, no symptoms of Covid-19 were found in them. They were discharged after testing negative a few days later, Malik said. Malik added, "Of the total 306 deliveries, 189 or 63% were normal, while the remaining 113, or 37%, were Caesarean deliveries." Strict care is exercised in looking after mothers and newborns at the hospital Dr Malik said.
"Mother's milk is very important for proper nutrition of newborns. However, when the mother is breastfeeding her child, what care should the mother take and how she should be treated is the biggest question. Detailed guidance in this regard is being provided regularly to new mothers. Also, every mother admitted to the hospital is regularly given essential supplies like a bottle of sanitiser, soap, a mask etc. She is fed a high-protein and nutritious diet," informed Dr Malik. Elaborating on chances of a newborn getting infected by their Covid-19 positive mothers, Dr Malik said, "These don’t seem like cases of intra-uterine mother-to-child transmission. These infections are most likely due to contact after birth. All of these 300 babies are the same as those born to any non-Covid mothers,” said Dr Malik.
