| Summary: | Objectives
To conduct a systematic review of the impact of antenatal and neonatal exposure to SARS-CoV-2 on
developmental outcomes in preterm and term-born infants.
Methods
We searched Embase, Emcare, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Web of Science and grey literature on May 27,
2022 and updated on May 8, 2023. Studies defining exposure with a positive SARS-CoV-2 protein or
genetic material, used a contemporaneous non-exposed cohort, and reported developmental
outcomes up to 2 years of age were included.
Results
Four out of 828 screened studies were included. Meta-analysis included 815 infants screened for
developmental delay (n=306 exposed; n=509 non-exposed) between 3- and 11-months of age.
Among term-born infants, we did not find an increased risk of delay in communication (odd’s ratio:
0.73 (95% CI: 0.24 to 2.24)), gross motor (1.50 (0.62, 3.62)), fine motor (2.90 (0.58, 14.43)), problemsolving (1.19 (0.54, 2.66)) or personal-social development (1.93 (0.78, 4.75)) in exposed infants. The
number of preterm-born infants in the exposed (n=37) and comparison cohorts (n=41) were too few
to report meaningful comparisons.
Conclusion
Evidence regarding the potential impact of antenatal or neonatal exposure to SARS-CoV-2 infection
on developmental outcomes in early infancy is limited and inconsistent. Larger cohorts with
outcomes beyond the first year of life are needed.
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