Dallas' Parkland Hospital Celebrates Babies That Tested Negative After Birth From COVID-19 Infected Moms
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) — As of August 17 there were more than 170 infants born to COVID-19 positive mothers at Parkland Hospital. Of those babies, five tested positive after birth. The majority of infants delivered to pregnant women diagnosed with the novel coronavirus at the facility were born without respiratory illness.
One of the healthy babies is a boy born on July 22 to Yuri Matamoros of Dallas. After delivery her son, Jesus, tested negative for COVID-19 although Matamoros had been hospitalized with the disease. The 28-year-old woman, her husband and their 4-year-old son share a home with extended family. Her husband and an aunt also contracted COVID-19 but the other family members did not.
"It's hard to say where I was exposed to COVID because I tried my best to never leave the house to protect myself, my baby and my family," Matamoros said. "I still remember the day very well, July 1. I had a headache, a fever, cough, my back was hurting and it was hard to walk."
Health workers say it's very important for pregnant women to continue receiving prenatal care from their providers while also limiting their interactions with other people to avoid COVID-19 exposure.
"This young mother was critically ill with COVID in the third trimester of pregnancy only a few weeks ago. ... She recently returned to Parkland to deliver a healthy newborn who was able to room in with her before they were discharged home. It's a real success story, which we need these days," said Dr. Emily Adhikari, with UT Southwestern Medical Center.
Officials say Parkland instituted a number of protocols at the beginning of the pandemic to protect pregnant women, new mothers and their babies.
Safety information for women who are pregnant, breastfeeding or caring for young children is available from The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Click here to learn more about Parkland services.
