*2.1. Population and Setting*

The study recruited women hospitalized in high-risk units in the Soroka University Medical Center (SUMC). Recruitment and data collection were done during the COVID-19 pandemic strict isolation period, between 19 March 2020 and 26 May 2020. Women who were hospitalized in the high-risk pregnancy units before the COVID-19 pandemic (between November 2016 and April 2017) served as the comparison group. The comparison group was composed of women who were recruited for previous study performed in the same high-risk pregnancy units [11]. High risk pregnancy was defined according to the Israeli Ministry of Health statement regarding criteria for high-risk pregnancy. These include maternal chronic illness (such as cardiac disease, pulmonary disease, hypertension, diabetes), obstetric and gynecological history (such as recurrent pregnancy loss, congenital abnormalities, intrauterine fetal death), and other conditions, such as multiple gestation, suspected intrauterine growth retardation, suspected macrosomia and more [14]. SUMC, located in southern Israel, is the largest country birth center, with more than 17, 000 births a year. The study was approved by the SUMC IRB Committee (IRB approval # 0079-20-SOR).
