Newborn Baby Dies After Testing Positive For COVID-19 Amid Omicron Surge

A 5-day-old girl, who tested positive for COVID-19, reportedly died in a hospital in India.

Authorities said Sunday the newborn was suffering from other health issues too.

The girl was born in Dabra Civil Hospital located in Madhya Pradesh’s Gwalior district, media reports said. She was then referred to Gwalior Kamla Raja Hospital after she tested positive for coronavirus, chief medical and health officer Bindu Singhal said, the LiveMint reported.

“It can’t be said that the infant died only because of COVID-19 infection. She was suffering from other ailments and infections since she was born,” Singhal added.

However, doctors did not reveal what other health conditions the newborn was suffering from.

According to reports, the child's mother, identified only as Mamta, tested negative for COVID-19 when she went into labor. She gave birth to the girl child, and when the baby's condition deteriorated, she was admitted in Kamla Raja Hospital on Jan. 18.

A COVID-19 test report for the baby came positive. The girl was shifted to the intensive care unit of the hospital, where she died, Free Press Journal reported.

Chief and District Health Officer Dr. Manish Sharma said an investigation was underway to understand how the girl was infected, as both her parents tested negative for the virus. The doctors and staff of Dabra Civil Hospital were also being tested.

The death of the newborn baby comes as India continues to see a surge in the COVID-19 cases since the Omicron variant was found. In the last 24 hours, the country recorded 306,064 new COVID-19 cases and 439 related deaths. While the daily cases dropped from that of Sunday’s more than 333,000 cases, the positivity rate climbed to 20.75 percent.

Earlier this month, India also began its third booster vaccine dose for frontline workers and everyone above the age of 60 years with comorbidities. Vaccination for the age group 15-18 also began this month. Health officials also said they would soon start a vaccination drive for those above the age of 12.

Amid daily surge in coronavirus cases, the Union health ministry and family welfare in the country, on Thursday, revised the COVID-19 SOPs for children under 5 years, saying that wearing masks was not mandatory.