Paxlovid Safe for Pregnant Patients With COVID-19

FRIDAY, Dec. 9, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Pregnant patients treated with nirmatrelvir and ritonavir (Paxlovid) for COVID-19 tolerate the treatment well, according to a study published online Nov. 29 in JAMA Network Open.

William M. Garneau, M.D., from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, and colleagues evaluated the clinical outcomes associated with nirmatrelvir and ritonavir used to treat severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in pregnant patients. The analysis included 47 pregnant patients.

The researchers found that medication was initiated at a median of one day after symptom onset, and only two patients (4.3 percent) did not complete the course of therapy because of adverse effects. Nearly two-thirds of treated patients (63.8 percent) had a comorbidity in addition to pregnancy that could be a risk factor for developing severe COVID-19. Half of patients (53.2 percent) delivered after treatment with nirmatrelvir and ritonavir, of whom 12 (48 percent) underwent cesarean delivery, nine of which were scheduled. Two of 47 patients (4.3 percent) were hospitalized for preexisting comorbidities.

"The lack of an increase in serious adverse effects affecting pregnant patients or offspring suggests that clinicians can use this drug combination to treat pregnant patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection," the authors write.

One author disclosed financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry.

Abstract/Full Text