Flu: the dangerous disease for pregnant women and babies, not the vaccine

By Mélodie CapronnierPublished on ShareSend by e-mail

The annual flu epidemic will soon begin, and that is why the vaccination campaign started on October 26th. Vulnerable people, including pregnant women, are particularly called upon to receive the flu vaccine from the first weeks. Risks of the disease during pregnancy, advantages of the vaccine... We tell you everything.

Pregnant, why get vaccinated against the flu?

Having the flu when you are pregnant is far from trivial, recalls the Health Insurance in a press release. And for good reason: “Pregnancy leads to a modification of immunity which favors the risk of infection with the possible occurrence of pulmonary and cardiac complications”. Thus, future mothers are seven times more likely to be hospitalized after contracting the virus than the general population at the same age, precisely because of these complications. On top of that, having a high fever is very risky, since it can cause contractions. And this phenomenon "can be harmful for the good progress of the pregnancy with as a consequence a possible occurrence of a miscarriage", or a premature delivery.

It should also be remembered that getting vaccinated against the flu during pregnancy helps protect the baby during its first months, when it is particularly fragile and does not receive the vaccine. "The antibodies, produced by the mother thanks to the influenza vaccination, passing the placental barrier, will be transmitted to the fetus and will persist 3 to 6 months after birth", and this without the injection presenting a risk for him, explains the health insurance.

Finally, you have to be particularly vigilant against the flu in this year 2021 when you are expecting a child. “Last year the flu virus circulated very little due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the respect of barrier gestures. Little exposed to the flu virus, the population was unable to acquire natural immunity. anti-influenza, which raises fears of an intense flu epidemic in 2021-2022 by increasing the risk of transmission of the flu virus, especially among those most at risk", insists the Health Insurance. Anti-Covid and anti-influenza vaccines can be carried out at the same time.

Influenza vaccination during pregnancy is safe

Since 2012, the flu vaccine has been recommended by the High Council for Public Health for pregnant women, every quarter. In addition to protecting, "it is not associated with any risk of maternal disease, growth retardation in utero, miscarriage, fetal malformation, or disease of the child after birth". Health Insurance wishes to reassure future mothers by recalling that, "contrary to popular belief, the vaccine does not give the flu". "It is made from inactivated viruses with the aim of stimulating the body's immune response, which can sometimes give a few brief symptoms caused by the production of antibodies against the disease". In addition, the flu vaccines used in France do not contain adjuvants, only "fragments of four viral strains likely to circulate", determined by the World Health Organization (WHO) each year.

Note that the flu vaccine is 100% reimbursed for pregnant women. They simply have to present a voucher that a healthcare professional (doctor, midwife, pharmacist or nurse) has given them.