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Evaluating the clinical performance of available methods to detect antibodies against Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) has become a primordial issue in clinical laboratories. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical performance of two methods for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies detection, an automated Chemiluminescent Immunoassay (CLIA) and an immunochromatographic Lateral-Flow Assay (LFA) in patients with positive reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Performance for CLIA method was Positive Agreement (PA) 56.6% and Negative Agreement (NA) 96,6% for IgM and PA 85.8%/NA 90,2% for IgG. Performance for LFA method was PA 56.2% and NA 100% for IgM and PA 95.5% and NA 100 % for IgG. LFA general agreement IgG was better than CLIA. In both methods, significant differences in Kappa index are observed when IgG and IgM are compared. When evaluating the data from a clinical perspective, we found that both method performance for IgM detection may not meet the expected requirements for their clinical utility and could lead to an inappropriate medical decision. The findings of this study show that both immunoassay methods might be reliable for assessing immunological response in COVID-19 patients. Our results also confirm that IgG measurement could be helpful, especially for epidemiological studies in our population. These results provide evidence to justify epidemiological studies in our population. Fil: Jacobsen, Dario Gustavo. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica; Argentina Fil: Gonzalez, D.. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Instituto de Fisiopatología y Bioquímica Clínica; Argentina Fil: Jamardo, J.. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica; Argentina Fil: Ibar, C.. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica; Argentina Fil: Pugliese, L.. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica; Argentina Fil: Fortuna, F.. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica; Argentina Fil: Carrizo, E.. Coordinadora de Salud Misionar; Argentina Fil: Caro, E. M.. Laboratorio Biogenar; Argentina Fil: Perazzi, Beatriz Elizabeth. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Instituto de Fisiopatología y Bioquímica Clínica; Argentina Fil: Repetto, Esteban Martín. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Reboredo, G.. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Hospital de Clínicas General San Martín; Argentina Fil: Fabre, B.. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Instituto de Fisiopatología y Bioquímica Clínica; Argentina

Several preclinical and clinical studies suggest that maternal psychosocial stress and anxiety during pregnancy may have persistent consequences for the long-term health of the offspring. The aim of our study was to evaluate possible associations between maternal cortisol levels, gestational age, baby’s birth weight and umbilical cord blood cortisol concentration. 145 women who attended the Obstetrics’ Service, Hospital de Clinicas “José de San Martín”, at the time of delivery, were included in this study. The population was divided into two groups: group 1 was constituted by 89 healthy women (26.5 ± 7.0 years) while group 2 was made up of 56 women (29 ± 7.8 years) who presented different pathologies. Total population was also divided according to the type of birth (cesarean section or vaginal). Group 2 was divided considering baby’s APGAR 5/10 score and birth weight. Cortisol was measured by a chemoluminiscent method (Immulite 2000 Siemens). Umbilical cord blood cortisol concentration correlated with pregnancy week (r=0.451, p=0.0001), birth weight (r=0.284, p=0.010) and maternal cortisol concentration; (r=0.424, p=0.0001). After dividing the population according to the type of birth, significant differences were found in umbilical cord blood cortisol concentration (p=0.003), pregnancy week (p=0.0001) and birth weight, (p=0.002), were found. A linear regression analysis was performed showing that maternal cortisol and pregnancy week were associated with umbilical cord blood cortisol concentrations (F=6.502, p=0.004) even after adjusting for birth weight. The correlation found between maternal cortisol and umbilical cord blood cortisol levels could be related to a probable fetal programming of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis.