Call of experts to pregnant women: get vaccinated against Covid

Many pregnant women have avoided injections, unaware that the virus poses significant risks to the fetus - and to them.

Of all the groups still at risk from Covid-19 — including the elderly and the immunocompromised — pregnant women seem the most oblivious to the risks.

Covid can kill pregnant women and can lead to miscarriages, premature births and stillbirths even when women have asymptomatic or mild disease. The infection can also affect the baby's brain development.

Dozens of studies have shown that the Covid vaccine is safe for pregnant women. Vaccination of the mother also transmits protective antibodies to her fetus.

Yet only 70% of women completed the primary Covid vaccination series before or during pregnancy. pregnancy, which means that about 30% of pregnant women have not benefited from this basic protection. Since early September, only 15% have opted for a booster shot.

Even the flu vaccine has not been popular with pregnant women this year: only 37% of pregnant women had been vaccinated against the flu by the end of October, up from nearly 60% by the end of September 2020.

The United States is now grappling with a mixture of respiratory syncytial viruses, influenza and coronavirus, all of which can cause serious illness in pregnant women. Winter is shaping up to be bleak.

"It worries me, especially given the low vaccination rates," said Dr. Denise Jamieson, obstetrician at the Emory University of Atlanta and a member of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists Covid Expert Panel.

Even early in the pandemic, it was evident that Covid was dangerous during pregnancy. Data from a June 2020 study showed that among pregnant women infected with Covid, around one in three ended up in hospital, compared to around 6% of women who were not pregnant.

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Infected pregnant women were 50% more likely to be admitted to intensive care units and 70% more likely to need a ventilator.

< p class="css-at9mc1 evys1bk0">"It is very clear now that if you are pregnant, planning to become pregnant or breastfeeding, for you and for your baby, it is very important to get vaccinated," said Dr. Neel Shah, assistant professor at Harvard and chief medical officer of Maven Clinic, a digital health clinic. care provider for women and families.

Pregnant women, their families and even their doctors may not realize the importance of vaccination due to communication “slow and confusing” from public health agencies, Dr. Shah said.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...