1 COVID‐19 AND PREGNANCY

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) quickly spread worldwide as a once in a century pandemic in the form of a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19). COVID‐19 has taken only a few months since it was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization in March 2020 to affect close to 29 million vulnerable people and inflict approximately 1 million deaths across continents.1 Initial cases of COVID‐19 disease patients were first identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019 and January 2020. One major factor that has baffled clinicians and scientists is that this pandemic has spread in a sustained manner without a significant reduction in transmissibility. Among the vulnerable populations, pregnant women and their fetuses have traditionally represented a high‐risk population during viral pandemics; however, this pandemic demonstrated altered maternal immunity2, 3 and effect on gametogenesis4 and organogenesis,5 and placental function.6, 7 To date, the outcomes of several cohorts of pregnant women have been reported, with no definite evidence of mortality and vertical transmission.8-10 On the other hand, there are reports of preterm deliveries, albeit at a suggested higher rate compared with non‐COVID pregnant women, and stillbirth.9, 10 Long‐term effects of in utero exposure to COVID‐19 are not known.

This Special Issue on COVID‐19 and Pregnancy centers around consequences for Maternal and Neonatal Health and presents cutting‐edge information on various aspects of basic SARS‐CoV‐2 infection, placenta as an infectious target, and clinical observations in pregnant women (Figure 1). We hope this issue will be of benefit to researchers globally, interested in the role of COVID‐19 in pregnancy complications.