Pfizer & Moderna Vaccines Don't Appear To Pose Serious Risk During Pregnancy
A new study shows that the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines are safe for pregnant women
As the vaccine rollout continue, the anti-vaxx community continues to spread misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccine which is dangerous and prevents the world from ever controlling the COVID-19 pandemic. However, in a swift “Not today, Satan” move, a new study is showing that mRNA vaccines (which includes the Pfizer and Modern vaccines) are safe for pregnant women, which is a big deal since some pregnant people still have reservations against getting the vaccine.
A new study published Wednesday, April 21, 2021, in the New England Journal of Medicine shows that the Pfizer and Modern COVID-19 vaccines do not appear to pose any serious risk for pregnant people. This is especially good news considering a separate study just found that expectant mothers who get infected with COVID-19 can face serious side effects for them and their baby, including an increased risk for death.
“The risk of death for pregnant women with COVID-19 was 1.6%, which was 22 times higher than pregnant women who were not infected,” CNN reports on the new study which was published Thursday in JAMA Pediatrics.
This alarming news about COVID-19 and maternal health makes getting the vaccine that much more important.
As for the study about the mRNA vaccines, a total of 35,691 participants aged 16 to 54, who identified as pregnant, participated in the program. Their information was culled from self-submitted info they reported in the CDC’s V-safe smartphone-based surveillance system, as well as data from the CDC’s Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS).
Researchers in this study followed a group of 3,958 pregnant participants (out of the 35,691) and found that the percentage of pregnancy-related adverse events (including miscarriages) was on par with the rates that the same incidents would occur if they sampled a group of 3,958 pregnant people that had not been vaccinated.
“Although not directly comparable, calculated proportions of adverse pregnancy and neonatal outcomes in persons vaccinated against Covid-19 who had a completed pregnancy were similar to incidences reported in studies involving pregnant women that were conducted before the Covid-19 pandemic,” the researched wrote.
Pregnant individuals did report more arm pain at the injection site than non-pregnant people, but the good news is that pregnant individuals reported less vaccine side effects like headache, muscle aches, chills and fever than their non-pregnant counter parts, and anyone who has gotten their second dose will tell you that if you can find any way to avoid the side-effects, do it.
Additionally, the CDC reports that the vaccines “are unlikely to pose a specific risk for people who are pregnant.” The main reason that pregnant people originally worried about the vaccine was generally because the initial vaccine trials did not include any pregnant people. However, many studies are underway regarding pregnancy and the vaccine and new data, like the study released Wednesday, spell great news for expecting parents who want the vaccine.
