Since April 2021, pregnant women have priority for vaccination against Covid-19, from the second trimester of pregnancy. Over the months, epidemiological data have accumulated on the efficacy and tolerance of mRNA vaccines in pregnant women. The European Medicines Agency has just compiled data from more than 65,000 pregnant women and concludes that the two most widely used mRNA vaccines are safe for mother and child.
mRNA vaccines and pregnancy
Epidemiological studies quickly showed that pregnant women with certain pathologies (overweight, high blood pressure, diabetes, etc.) had an increased risk of developing severe forms of Covid-19, particularly at the end of pregnancy. This finding has led public health authorities to prioritize from April 2021 the access of pregnant women to vaccination from the second trimester of pregnancy. Then, in July 2021, pregnant women were able to access vaccination from the start of their pregnancy.
As for the rest of the population, the ANSM has set up close monitoring of vaccine-related adverse events in pregnant and breastfeeding women. Since then, the ANSM has not identified any specific risk in connection with the vaccination of pregnant women, regardless of the vaccine administered. Very recently, the European Medicines Agency took stock of the issue, compiling data collected from 65,000 women who had been vaccinated with one of the two most widely used mRNA vaccines: the vaccine distributed by the Pfizer laboratory and the vaccine distributed by the Moderna laboratory.
No complications for mother or baby
According to the European Medicines Agency, all the data analyzed to date, from a dozen international studies, do not reveal no particular complications following vaccination of pregnant women with an mRNA vaccine. The Agency has not noted any increased risk of miscarriage, pregnancy complications or even premature births, nor any consequences on the health of the unborn child. Fears, however, expressed by some pregnant women before being vaccinated.
On the contrary, the data collected confirms the benefits of vaccination during pregnancy for:
- Reduce the risk of hospitalization in the event of Covid-19;
- Reduce the risk of infection-related mortality.
The Agency recalls that Covid-19 can be serious during pregnancy, especially in the last trimester.
Specific monitoring of possible adverse effects
In conclusion to its opinion, the European Medicines Agency confirms the interest of vaccination in pregnant women, considering that the benefits far outweigh the possible risks. The two most widely used mRNA vaccines would therefore not present no risk to the health of mother and child, while effectively protecting them from severe forms of Covid-19.
However, specific monitoring of the adverse effects of vaccination in pregnant women continues, as clinical studies on vaccines have not included pregnant women. In addition, the European Medicines Agency should soon examine the data collected with the other vaccines against Covid-19. This advice should in any case reassure pregnant women and encourage them to get vaccinated to protect themselves and their babies from infection by SARS-Cov2.
Estelle B., Doctor of Pharmacy
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