As the vaccine rollout continues, women who are pregnant, plan to become pregnant or are breastfeeding have to decide if getting the vaccine is right for them.
Dr. David McKenna, a maternal fetal medicine OB/GYN at Miami Valley Hospital, believes it is a good idea for pregnant women and those trying to have a baby to get the vaccine. He based his belief on the American Academy and American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, as well as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s stance that the vaccine should not be withheld from pregnant women.
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“That’s not a true recommendation for actually taking the vaccine, but right now we see no reason why the vaccine should be more dangerous for pregnant women than for non-pregnant women,” Dr. McKenna said.
But The World Health Organization issued new recommendations concerning who should and should not get the Moderna COVID-19 vaccines.
The new recommendations, released this week, said that while pregnant women are in a higher risk category of developing severe COVID-19, the WHO does not recommend that they get the vaccine unless they’re at high risk of exposure, for example, people who work in health care.
Dr. McKenna said that women who are pregnant and contract COVID are more likely to have severe disease.
“You’re more likely to be admitted to the hospital, to the ICU or even die from having COVID,” Dr. McKenna said.
He also thinks it is a good idea for women who are thinking of getting pregnant to get vaccinated as soon as it becomes available to them.
For women who are breastfeeding, Dr. McKenna said it would be a good idea to get the vaccine.
“Number one, you want to protect yourself, but also the antibodies that mom makes is going to get passed on to the baby through the breast milk,” Dr. McKenna said. “So it’s also going to protect your baby.”
Cox Media Group
