MINNESOTA, USA — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is now urging anyone who is pregnant to get the COVID-19 vaccine. It comes amid a surge in cases driven by the delta variant.
A local doctor is echoing what the federal agency is recommending and says COVID can lead to severe complications during pregnancy – from pre-term labor to even death. Malini DeSilva also has new, real-world data that further proves the vaccines are safe for people and their baby.
DeSilva co-authored a new report and is a vaccine researcher at HealthPartners Institute. The data was published by the CDC and shows that vaccination rates are low among younger people who are pregnant and some communities of color.
"We're not necessarily surprised, but know there's room for improvement and that there has been hesitancy among pregnant persons most likely because of their exclusion from clinical trials," said DeSilva.
She says they've collected six months of data that shows any side effects from the vaccine are similar to those in people who aren't pregnant, like pain at the injection site.
"They also looked at spontaneous abortions, stillbirth, pre-term labor and some type of infant outcomes and didn't find any increased risk for those compared to those in the general population," said DeSilva.
The CDC had stopped short of fully recommending pregnant people get vaccinated. But as of Wednesday, that new safety data, on top of the infectious delta variant, has the agency urging them to do so.
DeSilva says pregnancy can already compromise someone's immune system. That can increase their risk of being admitted to intensive care, being put on ventilation and even death if they also get COVID.
Shakopee High School teacher Deidra Veitengruber got vaccinated at just seven weeks into her pregnancy, due, in part, to the patients her brother treated in the ICU at a Nashville, Tennessee hospital.
"He had seen women even lose their pregnancy later in the term because they had gotten COVID, and their bodies could not sustain also keeping that baby alive," said Veitengruber.
Despite a bout of vertigo after her first dose, Veitengruber didn't have other symptoms. She's enjoying her third trimester and knowing her baby could have antibodies.
"I feel like I've blinked and we're already within two months," said Veitengruber.
Experts point to another vaccine called the Tdap. It's also recommended during pregnancy that protects against whooping cough. They report fewer cases of it in infants born to people who got the Tdap vaccine.
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As for COVID, the CDC says 105,000 pregnant people have gotten it and risks are disproportionately high for BIPOC communities.
DeSilva reiterates the vaccines are the most widely studied and encourages you to talk to someone you trust about getting one.
"I think we're doing our due diligence to make sure these are safe for pregnant individuals and their infants," said DeSilva.
There are several systems always monitoring vaccines after they're on the market including the Vaccine Safety Datalink, which DeSilva is a part of in partnership with the CDC.
Some also include the National Institutes of Health and VAERS - a way for people to publicly report any adverse affects from vaccines.