WHY ADMINISTER INFLUENZA VACCINES DURING PREGNANCY?

[Guest guest]

" Women who received

influenza vaccine during pregnancy had the same risk for ILI visits

compared with unvaccinated women, adjusting for women's age and week of

delivery. "

WHY ADMINISTER INFLUENZA VACCINES DURING PREGNANCY?

Am J Perinatol. 2004 Aug;21(6):333-9.

Related Articles, Links

Effectiveness of influenza vaccine during pregnancy in preventing

hospitalizations and outpatient visits for respiratory illness in

pregnant women and their infants.

Black SB,

Shinefield HR,

France EK,

Fireman BH,

Platt ST,

Shay D;

Vaccine Safety Datalink Workgroup.

Kaiser Permanente Vaccine Study Center, Oakland, CA 94612, USA.

The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices of the Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention recommends influenza vaccination for women

who will be in the second or third trimester of pregnancy during the

influenza season. We analyzed hospital admissions with principal

diagnoses of influenza or pneumonia and influenza-like illness (ILI)

outpatient visits to study the effectiveness of influenza vaccine during

pregnancy in protecting women and infants from influenza-related

morbidity. Estimates of influenza vaccine effectiveness across five flu

seasons (Fall 1997 to Spring 2002) were calculated using proportional

hazards models for women and infant study populations in Kaiser

Permanente Northern California. Outpatient utilization outcomes included

physician visits with a diagnosis of upper respiratory infection,

pharyngitis, otitis media, asthma, bronchial asthma, viral infection,

pneumonia, fever, cough, or wheezing associated with respiratory illness.

Inpatient outcomes included hospitalizations with principal diagnoses of

influenza or pneumonia. Women who received influenza vaccine during

pregnancy had the same risk for ILI visits compared with unvaccinated

women, adjusting for women's age and week of delivery. When asthma visits

were excluded from the outcome measure, we also found no difference in

the risk of outpatient visits for vaccinated and unvaccinated women.

Hospital admissions for influenza or pneumonia for women in the study

population were quite rare and no women died of respiratory illness

during pregnancy. Infants born to women who received influenza

vaccination had the same risks for influenza or pneumonia admissions

compared with infants born to unvaccinated women, adjusting for infant's

gender, gestational age, week of birth, and birth facility. Maternal

influenza vaccination was also not a significant determinant of risk of

ILI (excluding otitis media) outpatient visits for infants, nor did it

significantly affect the risk of otitis media visits. Influenza

vaccination during pregnancy did not significantly affect the risk of

cesarean section, adjusting for the woman's age. It also did not affect

the risk of preterm delivery. Although the immunogenicity of influenza

vaccination in pregnancy in mother and infant has been well documented,

in this study, we were unable to demonstrate the effectiveness of

influenza vaccination with data for hospital admissions and physician

visits. One possible interpretation of these findings is that typical

influenza surveillance measures based on utilization data are not

reliable in distinguishing influenza from other respiratory illness.

Hospitalizations for respiratory illness were uncommon in both vaccinees

and nonvaccinees.

PMID: 15311370 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

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Sheri Nakken, R.N., MA, Hahnemannian

Homeopath

Vaccination Information & Choice Network, Washington State, USA

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