Scheduled for a flu shot? If you're pregnant, you might want to skip the vaccine until you give birth. A new study found that pregnant women who received flu shots are more likely to lose their baby.
Previous studies claim that flu shots are perfectly safe during pregnancy but this might not be the case since vaccination has a strong link with miscarriage.
The study’s authors, two of whom are CDC researchers, noted a significant difference when monitoring women who miscarried within 28 days getting a flu vaccine. The vaccine offers protection against swine flu. They found that out of the 485 cases of miscarriages, 17 women may have lost the baby because of the flu shots.
CDC Warns That Flu Vaccine Causes ‘Spontaneous Abortions’
A CDC-funded study published by the medical journal Vaccine has confirmed that the flu vaccine causes spontaneous abortions in pregnant women.
“A study published today in Vaccine suggests a strong association between receiving repeated doses of the seasonal influenza vaccine and miscarriage,” writes CIDRAP, the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy.
“A puzzling study of U.S. pregnancies found that women who had miscarriages between 2010 and 2012 were more likely to have had back-to-back annual flu shots that included protection against swine flu,” reports Medical Xpress.
Despite this, health officials are still encouraging members of the public to go out and get their seasonal flu shot, even if they’re pregnant. According to CDC officials, “all pregnant women” should be vaccinated against the flu, even if it risks a miscarriage.
“I want the CDC and researchers to continue to investigate this,” said Dr. Laura Riley, a Boston-based obstetrician who leads a committee on maternal immunization. “But as an advocate for pregnant women, what I hope doesn’t happen is that people panic and stop getting vaccinated.”
Statesman.com reports: Past studies have found flu vaccines are safe during pregnancy, though there’s been little research on impact of flu vaccinations given in the first three months of pregnancy.
Image courtesy of: Greyson Rose
