Chinese baby in Wuhan tests positive for coronavirus 30 hours after birth

A baby in the coronavirus outbreak's epicenter of Wuhan, China, was reportedly diagnosed with the illness shortly after being delivered earlier this week, raising concerns that pregnant mothers may be able to pass the disease along to their unborn children.

Citing Chinese state media, the New York Post reported Wednesday that the newborn was diagnosed with the disease just 30 hours after birth in Wuhan.

Doctors at the hospital said that the child's vital signs were stable and that there was no fever or cough, Reuters reported. However, the story also says that the child was experiencing shortness of breath and that chest X-rays showed signs of infection and liver issues.

The newborn's diagnosis points to the possibility that the fast-spreading and deadly disease can be transmitted in the womb, during childbirth or afterward, otherwise known as "vertical transmission."

"This reminds us to pay attention to mother-to-child being a possible route of coronavirus transmission," said Zeng Lingkong, the chief physician of Wuhan Children Hospital's neonatal medicine department, according to Reuters.

Person-to-Person spread of coronavirus is "thought to occur mainly via respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes, similar to how influenza and other respiratory pathogens spread," the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention explains.

Wednesday's news contrasts with that of a healthy baby who was born to a coronavirus-infected mother while in quarantine last week. The child in question was delivered by Cesarean section on Thursday at Harbin Sixth People's Hospital in Heilongjiang.

The mother "had only just been told of her confirmed diagnosis, so she was concerned for her child," said Dr. Yu Dan, an obstetrician from Harbin Red Cross Central Hospital. "In addition to that, she was accompanied by no family members, as all had been placed in quarantine as either confirmed or suspected cases."

"This child is a special case," said Zhao Huaxian, the hospital's head of pediatrics. "Our first concern was a vertical transmission infection, so we took precautions and put her under round-the-clock monitoring."