Pregnant? Swine Flu & You

By Charles Hux, MD

Q: I’m reluctant to get the flu vaccines (I'm in my first trimester and in great health), but my normally laid-back OB-GYN is really pressuring me. Help!

Many pregnant women are afraid that the H1N1 vaccine may not be safe, but the H1N1 vaccine is made in the same way and in the same facilities as the seasonal flu vaccine. Pregnant women have received seasonal flu vaccines for many years with no short or long-term risks to either mother-to-be or baby.

Some women also worry that receiving any type of vaccine during pregnancy might increase the chance that their unborn baby will be autistic, due to the thimerosal (the mercury-based preservative) in vaccines. But the amount of mercury in a single dose shot is extremely small, less than the amount in one spoon of canned tuna. If you are still concerned, several million doses without mercury will be made available for pregnant women.

THE RISKS OF NOT GETTING THE SHOTS
Pregnancy weakens a woman’s immune system, making her more susceptible. There is an 8 percent risk of death if a pregnant woman becomes infected with the H1N1 virus—that’s 1 in 12. The majority of pregnant women who did not survive after contracting the swine flu were otherwise healthy. A pregnant woman who already suffers from asthma or another chronic respiratory condition is at a greater risk for complications, and her baby may suffer from decreased oxygen supply if she falls sick. Lack of oxygen can cause neurological damage in unborn babies. Women who contract the swine flu are also at risk for premature delivery.

Getting both the H1N1 and seasonal flu vaccine is the best way to be fully protected this flu season and to protect your baby for the first six months of life. It is best to get both vaccines while you are still in the first trimester of pregnancy and to avoid getting sick with a fever, since having a fever in the first trimester doubles the baby’s risk of having a neural tube defect such as spina bifida.

If you do come down with flu symptoms, see your doctor or go to your local medical center as soon as possible to get anti-viral medication. The medicine will lessen your symptoms and shorten the duration of the illness, reducing the chance of serious complications. The anti-viral medication poses no risk to either mother or baby. The real danger comes from having an untreated case of H1N1 while pregnant.

Dr. Charles Hux is a maternal-fetal medicine specialist and the resident “multiples doctor” on The Learning Channel’s A Baby Story. He maintains a private practice and has published articles in The American Journal of Obstetrics/ Gynecology and The New England Journal of Medicine and Genetics. He is also the author of the new book, Nine Healthy Months.