Understanding COVID-19's Impact on Pregnant Women & Their Babies

UCLA has been a world leader in providing exceptional care to mothers and their babies for generations. Since our earliest beginnings, women from around the country have trusted UCLA to care for them and their babies—from women with routine pregnancies to those who face higher risk of complications. Bringing these two areas of medical expertise together, UCLA has partnered with UCSF to establish PRIORITY (Pregnancy CoRonavIrus Outcomes RegIsTrY), a nationwide registry of pregnant and postpartum women with or known or suspected COVID-19.

This collaborative paradigm will serve as the catalyst for life-saving advances and answer critical questions for peripartum, neonatal, and postpartum patients with COVID-19 nationally and globally. Leading the charge in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at UCLA is Dr. Yalda Afshar, who has identified the following philanthropic priorities to help advance this research:

Research 

Little is known about COVID-19 and its longstanding impact for women and babies. A robust research platform is needed to better understand the pathways of COVID-19 to identify risk factors and develop effective treatments—particularly as therapies currently in development could come with their own set of complications.

Patient Enrollment 

Dr. Afshar and her team are working to advance the understanding and treatment of COVID-19, paving the way for the development of better diagnostic and treatment strategies. One of the key ways to advance this important work is by providing dedicated funding to support the identification and enrollment of patients. Just into the first week, Dr. Afshar and her colleagues have enrolled 200+ patients with the hopes of recruiting at least 1,000 patients.

Biospecimen Bank 

Dr. Afshar and her team are seeking funding which would allow her to identify and follow peripartum, neonatal, and postpartum women with COVID-19 over time—collecting, storing, and analyzing the critical clinical data that could hold the key to helping unlock the mysteries behind COVID-19. This rich pool of data will be mined for key patterns, insights, and new discoveries; and help establish UCLA as a leader in the diagnosis, treatment, and management of COVID-19.

To remain at the forefront of research and patient care, UCLA increasingly depends on philanthropic investments from individuals who share our vision and understand the urgency of the moment for patients at risk for COVID19. We graciously ask for your support and partnership in seeking answers to this rare and misunderstood virus.

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