Influenza Vaccination in Pregnancy —Rolling Up Sleeves for Pregnant Persons and Infants

As the world transitions from COVID-19 pandemic to endemic, influenza continues to adapt and challenge our immune systems and our public health initiatives. Influenza remains an important respiratory illness among all populations, including pregnant persons and infants, who both have increased susceptibility to severe disease. Notably, infants younger than 6 months have the highest hospitalization rate of all children. Maternal influenza vaccination protects expectant persons from illness and its complications as well as infants in the first 6 months of life through transplacental transfer of antibodies. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommend inactivated influenza vaccination be administered during the influenza season to all pregnant persons. While influenza vaccines administered during pregnancy have been shown to reduce cases of influenza for both pregnant persons and their infants, the impact on neonatal outcomes since the 2009 novel influenza A (H1N1) pandemic and with the use of quadrivalent influenza vaccines is not well understood.
Source: JAMA Pediatrics - Category: Pediatrics Source Type: research