INVC,
Delhi,
An NIH study of pregnant women in Norway has shown that those who were infected with the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus had an increased risk of miscarriages and stillbirths. But those vaccinated against the virus had no increased risk of pregnancy loss.Influenza viruses have two surface proteins—hemagglutinin (H) and neuraminidase (N)—that allow them to enter and spread from cell to cell.The study by Dr. Siri Haberg, at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health and colleagues examined data from over 117,000 pregnancies and reported the findings in January 24, 2013, in the New England Journal of Medicine. Fifty-four percent of pregnant women in their second or third trimester were vaccinated during the pandemic. Vaccination substantially reduced the risk of an influenza diagnosis—by about 70 percent. The results showed that influenza infection almost doubled the risk of fetal loss. Influenza vaccination, however, didn’t increase the risk of fetal loss.In India, H1N1 is an important cause of flu, said Dr K K Aggarwal, Padma Shri and Dr B C Roy National Awardee and National Vice President Elect IMA. The vaccinations protect pregnant women against influenza illness, which could be harmful for both the mother and the baby and hence should be considered by the doctors for pregnant ladies
