Studies found that the COVID-19 pandemic did not affect Canada’s preterm and stillbirth rates-nationwide

With new research COVID-19 (New Coronavirus Infection) The pandemic did not affect the rate of preterm or stillbirth occurring in Canada.

NS Published studies Tuesday, the Canadian Medical Association Journal, analyzed the births of more than 2.4 million people in Ontario and found that there was a change in the proportion of such harmful childbirth events during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Did.

The study, led by Sinai Health’s chief pediatrician and professor at the University of Toronto, Praqueshshire, cited several reports of changes in preterm and stillbirth during the pandemic, including here in Canada.

Research has shown that these reports were not of the same size.

Shah said the findings were “relieved” given the initial reports of increased or decreased pregnancy complications.

“Basically, what we did was look at data for a period of the last 18 and a half years of babies in Ontario, and then look at preterm births and stillbirths,” Shah told Global News. rice field. In an interview on Saturday.

Shah and other researchers have looked at data for more than 18 years and found that Ontario’s “natural fluctuations” (variations in the rate of preterm and stillbirths that occur every six months) are pandemics.

His team also considers that pandemic-related measures and restrictions can affect preterm birth rates in a variety of situations, and instead has a high COVID-19 positive rate public such as Toronto. Focused on examining birth results in hygiene units. , Peel area, York area, Ottawa.

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Taking into account these factors, the differences in births between urban and rural areas, and the neighborhoods at various socio-economic levels, researchers found that these fluctuations in preterm and stillbirth were about the same as before the pandemic. I found that.

“The overall proportion of preterm and stillbirth … was within our expectations,” he said. “So I concluded that there was no difference.”

To extend the findings beyond Ontario’s findings, Shah said they saw Another study Conducted by some researchers from the Public Health Agency of Canada, it measured preterm and stillbirth rates nationwide from March to August 2020.

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The study found that preterm births were “unchanged” during the period compared to the previous year, and stillbirths increased slightly in April. Shah inferred that the measurements of the one-month increase could be fluctuations due to natural causes rather than pandemics, and overall, the findings are the same as his own.

A previous study conducted by researchers at the University of Manitoba at the onset of the COVID-19 epidemic found that during a pandemic, fewer babies were born prematurely in Canada and some countries around the world.

Mellie Brockway, a postdoctoral fellow at the Azad Institute at the University of Manitoba, who worked on the study, described the 980 CKNW. Morning with stains The apparent decline in preterm birth rates in August 2020 may be due to several pandemic-related reasons.

According to Brockway, this rate is due to the fact that many companies have moved to work from home, forcing mothers to work regular hours late in pregnancy, reducing air pollution and exposing them to other infectious diseases. He said it could be related to any of the above. It was the result of extensive blockades.

In the end, Shah said he wasn’t surprised at the findings of his study, instead saying that his previous findings on preterm birth rates were premature.

“I thought I wasn’t surprised — I was surprised when the story started [that more babies were being born prematurely], “He said,” I think there was talk in newspapers and on TV. “

“There we said we had to wait. We are doing this whole Ontario survey and we need to consider it from a holistic point of view.”

— — Use Canadian Press files

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