New vaccine guide for pregnant women

It seems that flu shots for pregnant women are a two for one. Babies born from mothers who got the flu shot are nearly 50% less likely to be hospitalized for the flu than those babies born to moms who passed on the shot. This is from a new collaborative study by researchers t Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center and colleagues.

Generally the flu shot is recommended for anyone older than six months. A pregnant mom getting the vaccine is one way to protect newborn babies who otherwise could not get it. Usually specific groups are targeted as those that receive the greatest benefit: older people and children among them.

“It is recommended that all pregnant women receive the influenza vaccine during pregnancy because it is known that pregnant women have increased morbidity and mortality during pregnancy and I the immediate post partum period if they get the flu,” said Katherine A. Poehling, MD, MPH, an associate professor pediatrics and lead author. “We also know that mothers pass antibodies through the placenta to the baby. This study showed us that receiving the influenza vaccine during pregnancy not only protects the baby in the early months of life.”

The importance of this study is that it reach the pregnant mothers who now need to receive the vaccine. “Pediatricians have been vaccinating children for a long time, but vaccine recommendations of OB/GYNs have changed over the last decade, so everyone is having to learn new recommendations and adjust. This is a relatively new activity for OB/GYNs.”

Source: Wake Forest, Medical News Today