September 29, 2023 – Getting vaccinated against COVID-19 while pregnant significantly reduces the prospect of a baby being hospitalized for COVID-19, recent data shows.
The study The CDC found that vaccines are 54% effective in protecting infants from COVID-19 hospitalization in the primary three months of life and are 35% effective in protecting babies aged 3 to five months. Infants will be vaccinated against COVID-19 starting at 6 months of age.
Infants hospitalized with COVID-19 whose moms weren’t vaccinated were more more likely to need assistance respiratory in comparison with infants whose moms were vaccinated.
For the study, researchers analyzed data from 716 babies who were hospitalized between March 2022 and May 2023. Of the babies within the study, 377 were hospitalized with COVID-19. Mothers were considered vaccinated in the event that they had received at the very least two COVID vaccines, one in all which was administered while pregnant. All other moms of babies within the study were unvaccinated.
Vaccinated moms pass antibodies against COVID-19 to the fetus through the placenta. The authors noted that a limitation of the study was that previous maternal infections weren’t analyzed, including in unvaccinated moms. They also said it is feasible that “infection-induced antibodies may provide some protection against COVID-19-related hospitalizations in infants.”
“Maternal vaccination during pregnancy provides some protection against COVID-19-related hospitalizations in infants, particularly in infants less than three months of age,” the authors write. “Expectant mothers should continue to get vaccinated against COVID-19 to protect themselves and their infants from hospitalization and serious outcomes associated with COVID-19.”
Previous Research has shown that infection with COVID-19 while pregnant increases the chance of premature birth and stillbirth and that pregnant persons are at increased risk of severe disease.
COVID vaccination rates amongst pregnant women range from 16% To 27%based on CDC. That compares to survey data released by the agency this week that showed 47% of pregnant women reported receiving a flu shot this past flu season. Of women who had a live birth, 54% reported receiving the Tdap vaccine, which may protect babies from whooping cough (sometimes called “whooping cough”).
The obstetricians and gynecologists skilled group strongly recommends that every one pregnant women get vaccinated against COVID-19 and receive the newest booster shot, adding that the vaccinations are protected while pregnant and breastfeeding. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists indicates that antibodies from the vaccine are transmitted from mother to child through the placenta while pregnant and can also be transmitted to the child through breast milk.
The researchers wrote that they were unable to research the timing of COVID vaccination while pregnant, specific brands or formulations of vaccines, nor whether the vaccine's effectiveness against different subvariants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus be different. They also noted that the outcomes might have been influenced by “maternal characteristics or protective behaviors” and that the consequences of breastfeeding, which can transfer antibodies to a baby, also couldn’t be assessed resulting from incomplete data for some moms.