Abstract
Objective: To describe the alterations of the composition of vaginal
microbiota in pregnant women with COVID-19. Design: Prospective
observational single-centre study Setting: Tertiary referral hospital
Participants: Pregnant women with COVID-19 Methods: The vaginal swabs
were collected during the active phase of infection and consecutively,
within a month after recovering from infection. In three patients,
longitudinal samples before, in the course, and after infection were
also obtained. The microbiome alterations were examined by 16S rRNA gene
sequencing. Main outcome measures: Vaginal microbiota profiles in
pregnant women with COVID-19 Results: Nineteen pregnant women with
COVID-19 and 28 healthy controls who were matched according to the
maternal age and gestational week were recruited. Shannon index and
inverse Simpson index for cross-sectional cohort indicate that alpha
diversity is significantly higher in women with COVID-19 (P=0.007 and
P=0.006, respectively). There was a significantly decrease in Firmicutes
(P=0.007) and Lactobacillus (P=0.019) with an increase in Bacteroidetes
(P=0.024) in women with COVID-19 when compared to those of healthy
controls. The higher amounts of Ureaplasma were found in women with the
moderate/severe disease, compared to those of the asymptomatic/mild
disease (P=0.001). Lactobacillus gasseri disappeared in women with the
moderate/severe disease. Prevotella timonensis was identified only in
the COVID-19 group. In longitudinal analysis, Actinobacteria was
elevated, Firmicutes and Bacteroides depleted during the active phase.
Conclusion: The study revealed that vaginal dysbiosis with a low
abundance of Lactobacillus and an increase in Bacteroidetes is
associated with COVID-19.