Influenza is the leading cause of vaccine-preventable deaths in the United States. Influenza also tops the list of the burden of disease and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) according to a Eurosurveillance article.
The flu is more likely to cause severe illness and harm pregnant women as compared to women who are not pregnant. Changes in the immune system, heart, and lungs during pregnancy make pregnant women (including women up to two weeks following childbirth) more susceptible to severe illness from flu, including illness that directly results in hospitalization. Pregnant women with influenza also have a higher risk of serious problems developing with their unborn baby, including premature labor and delivery. The strategy of vaccinating women during pregnancy is a research-backed strategy for protecting newborns who are too young to be vaccinated.
A new study found that flu vaccination during pregnancy can reduce a woman’s chance of severe illness — enough to require hospitalization — by 40%. The findings come from a multi-country study supported by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published in Clinical Infectious Diseases. Studies conducted in the past have shown that a flu vaccine can reduce a pregnant woman’s risk of flu illness, but this is the first study to demonstrate that flu vaccination protected pregnant women against hospitalization due to influenza.
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