COVID-19 vaccine benefits pregnant mother and unborn baby: Study

Pregnant women were excluded from investigational trials of the vaccine
Goal: Study effects of COVID vaccine on pregnant women and their infants
Findings: Antibodies transferred to infant, providing protection from virus

Updated: Aug 14, 2023 / 11:58 AM CDT

CHICAGO (NewsNation) — Getting the COVID-19 mRNA vaccine or booster during pregnancy can be beneficial for pregnant women and their babies, a new study found.

The study found that the vaccine given to the mother did transfer to the infant, providing some protection against the COVID-19 virus to the baby for its first few months of life, the report said. Those who received the booster shots had substantially more antibodies against the disease than the women who only received the two-dose vaccination.

“Pregnancy, in and of itself, is a risk factor for developing severe COVID,” Dr. Richina Bicette-McCain said. “Pregnant women who have contracted COVID, studies have shown, have longer hospital courses and are at higher risks for respiratory distress or needing mechanical ventilation.”

Bicette-McCain also said there is a risk of having stillborns and of death.

The Multisite Observational Maternal and Infant Study for COVID-19, launched in June of 2021, sought to research the effects of the coronavirus vaccine on pregnant women and their infants, especially since expecting mothers were originally excluded from investigational trials.

Because there was limited data on the reactions to the COVID vaccine, and the fact that pregnant women are more likely to die from the virus, researchers conducted this study to observe the effectiveness and safety of the various types of vaccines on pregnant women, the study said.

Scientists hoped to learn the immune response to the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, and whether the antibodies in the vaccine would transfer over to the fetus, News Medical reported.

Researchers followed more than 500 pregnant women at multiple sites, 240 of those participants were recorded in the study. Of those 240, 167 women received the two-dose vaccine and 73 received the two-dose vaccine and the booster shot.

The study determined that the vaccine is safe during pregnancy, and experts say it is encouraged because pregnant women are more at risk for complications, if they contract the virus.

“The fact that we know the vaccines are safe in pregnancy, and that the antibodies are transferring from mother to child, to protect the newborn infant — all around, it’s just a good idea if you are pregnant or thinking about getting pregnancy to get vaccinated,” Bicette-McCain said.