Anesthetic management of obstetric patients with COVID-19: A scoping review

Abstract

Background: The SARS-CoV-2 virus is a novel beta corona virus that causes a severe acute respiratory syndrome. COVID- 19 may cause severe illness and even death especially in patients with weakened immune system such as pregnant women. The obstetric patient suffering from COVID-19 requires special anesthetic care and presents several challenges for the anesthesia provider. Methods: This scoping review was reported following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) extension for scoping review guidelines. A search of PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science Databases was conducted. Additional information was retrieved by reviewing the reference lists from identified articles. The titles and abstracts of potentially relevant studies were screened before the retrieval of the full texts which were then examined to determine which studies met the eligibility criteria Results: Three hundred and seventy-nine potentially eligible studies were identified. 360 records were excluded as they were either duplicates or did not meet the eligibility criteria leaving 19 articles discussing anesthetic management in obstetric patients with COVID-19. Conclusion: The results of this scoping review suggest that general anesthesia, as an aerosol-generating procedure, should be avoided when possible in favor for regional anesthetic techniques when managing obstetric patients with COVID-19. To prevent the spread of infection, health care providers involved in labor or cesarean section delivery should utilize personal protective equipment and strictly adhere to infection control measures. Further studies with larger patient samples are required to shed light on the recommendations for anesthetic management for obstetric patients infected with COVID-19.