The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommends that all children ages 6 months to 18 years receive the influenza vaccine. This recommendation is based on the large numbers of influenza hospitalizations and physician visits in this particular age group. Additionally, pregnant women who contract influenza typically suffer from increased severity and greater mortality than the general population, especially in the later stages of pregnancy. Thus, the ACIP recommends that all women who are pregnant, regardless of trimester, or who will become pregnant during flu season be vaccinated with the inactivated influenza vaccine. Although the ACIP has many recommendations for children and adults, the greatest numbers of influenza cases per year are found in infants who are less than 6 months old. Yet, none of the approved influenza vaccines are licensed for administration to infants less than 6 months of age. However, new research validates 4 prior studies that indicate that infants born to vaccinated mothers benefit from the maternally-derived influenza antibodies. In fact, pregnant women who receive the influenza vaccine at least 14 days prior to giving birth, greatly decrease the risk (by 45-48%) of their child developing influenza in the first 5 months of life when infants are too young to receive the vaccine. Thus, in a time when influenza vaccinations are not recommended for infants, pregnant women can still do their part to protect their newborns by having themselves vaccinated.
For the article:
http://www.medpagetoday.com/InfectiousDisease/URItheFlu/26911
For the full paper:
http://www.ajog.org/article/S0002-9378(11)00232-8/fulltext
For information on Influenza Vaccines:
Influenza Vaccine in Pregnancy:
http://www.infantrisk.com/content/influenza-vaccine-pregnancy
Influenza Season Recommendations for Pregnant and Breastfeeding Mothers:
References:
- SA Rasmussen, DJ Jamieson and JS Bresee, Pandemic influenza and pregnant women, Emerg Infect Dis 14 (2008), pp. 95–100.
- K.A. Poehling, Impact of maternal immunization on influenza hospitalizations in infants, Am J Obstet Gynecol (February) (2011) [Epub ahead of print].
- Poehling KA, Edwards KM, Weinberg GA, et al;New Vaccine Surveillance Network. The underrecognized burden of influenza in young children. N Engl JMed. 2006;355(1):31-40.
- http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/rr5908a1.htm?s_cid=rr5908a1_w
