Covid+ mom with rare disorder delivers healthy baby

The baby was delivered through C-section surgery at KGMU. 

The doctors said both, the woman and the baby, are fine and have been discharged. 

The woman, Deepika Tiwari, was suffering from 'Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura' (ITP) in which the patient's immune system destroys platelets, resulting in internal bleeding or from the skin. 

However, the management and treatment of KGMU doctors helped the patient in safe delivery. 

"Tears rolled out when I was told that my wife had delivered a healthy girl and both were stable," said Shailendra Tiwari, the woman's husband. 

Doctors said ITP can affect both children and adults. 

Children often develop ITP after a viral infection and usually recover fully without treatment. In adults, ITP is often long-term or chronic. It affects three persons in a population of 1 lakh. 

Dean, medical and head of obstetrics and gynaecology department, Prof Uma Singh said, "Deepika Tiwari, with 38-week-and-six-day pregnancy, came to Queen Mary Hospital with complaint of abdominal pain on May 15 where she was found Covid positive. As per  the protocol, she was shifted to Covid hospital at the RALC building. Tests showed her platelet counts were 18,000 cells/microliter and also confirmed her as a patient of ITP." 

Since platelets help the blood clot, when their number decreases the risk of bleeding increases. If they fall below 10,000 platelets per microliter it might become difficult to stop internal bleeding even without any injury. 

Therefore, the KGMU gynaecology team transfused four units of platelets. Besides, Intravenous immunoglobulin 80 GM worth approximately Rs 3 lakh was given free of cost to the patient, said Dr Uma Singh. 

KGMU vice-chancellor Lt-Gen Bipin Puri has congratulated the team members of the gynaecology department for the feat.