Vaccination of pregnant women.
The urgent need for the introduction of methods for the prevention of a new coronavirus infection has contributed to numerous studies aimed at developing effective vaccines against COVID-19. Despite the susceptibility of pregnant women to the severe course of a new coronavirus infection, this category of women is not included in clinical trials of available vaccines against COVID-19 - due to existing ethical standards.
Several studies have shown that vaccination during pregnancy is safe and highly effective not only for pregnant women, but also for the fetus and/or newborn due to passive transplacental transmission of antibodies to offspring. It is known that vaccination during pregnancy protects the mother and child from infectious agents, including, for example, influenza and whooping cough.
WHO recommends that pregnant women consider vaccination against COVID-19 based on an assessment of the benefits and risks. It is emphasized that it is necessary to take into account the likely benefits of immunization and the available data on the safety of vaccination of pregnant women, as well as the epidemiological situation. It should be noted that WHO does not recommend pregnancy testing before vaccination, postponing pregnancy or terminating it due to vaccination. Despite the lack of data on the safety of vaccines against COVID-19 during lactation, WHO experts recommend vaccination during lactation to offset the risks of the consequences of the infection itself. Moreover, WHO does not advise interrupting breastfeeding in order to get vaccinated against COVID-19
Various foreign expert groups suggest that the COVID-19 vaccine based on mRNA nanoparticles and the adenovirus vector does not pose a significant risk to the fetus or infant. Recent studies have demonstrated the presence of post-vaccination antibodies to the new coronavirus in breast milk, which can also protect the baby from infection. Moreover, vaccination in the period of 27-31 weeks showed higher efficiency compared to the period of 32-36 weeks.
In our country, taking into account the positive results of preclinical studies of the safety of the Gam-COVID-Vac vaccine, as well as accumulated data on its effectiveness and safety during clinical trials and the post-registration period, the expert community decided to remove contraindications for the use of this vaccine in pregnant women.
Especially vaccination should be offered to pregnant women who have individual risk factors for severe COVID-19 (concomitant diseases: diabetes mellitus, chronic respiratory diseases, oncological diseases, chronic kidney disease, cardiovascular diseases, obesity, liver diseases and other risk factors), as well as those at high risk of infection with a new coronavirus due to their occupation (for example, medical and social workers, etc.). Before vaccination against COVID-19, the individual risk of thrombosis should also be taken into account.
There is no evidence of the negative impact of the COVID-19 vaccine on the reproductive health of women and men - this is reported by a group of Russian scientists led by the chief gynecologist of the Ministry of Health of Russia, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Adamyan L.V., the chief freelance specialist of the Ministry of Health of Russia on the reproductive health of women, Professor Dolgushina N.V. Those who are planning pregnancy, preparing for in vitro fertilization, should be vaccinated as a pre-pregnancy preparation.
The information was prepared by GUZOT "tSOZiMP" based on the materials
Federal State Budgetary Institution "Ivanovo Research Institute of Motherhood and Childhood named after V.N.Gorodkov" of the Ministry of Health Of Russia
