Study highlights swine flu risk for pregnant women

Health professionals are calling for all pregnant women to get the flu jab, after a study showed that baby deaths among women with the 2009 strain of the virus were more than five times higher than normal.

Mothers who had the virus were also more likely to have premature births.

The National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit at Oxford University examined the cases of every pregnant woman in the UK who was admitted to hospital while suffering from flu. Between September 2009 and January 2010, 265 mothers with H1N1 were studied, with seven babies stillborn and three who died shortly after birth.

That is the equivalent of 39 babies in 1,000 dying, before or shortly after birth, compared to 7 in 1,000 in mothers not infected with the virus.

Dr Marian Knight, who led the research, said: “This new evidence of the risk to babies shows even more clearly the severe consequences H1N1 flu infection can have in pregnancy. By getting vaccinated against flu, women can prevent these risks to both themselves and their unborn child.”

Louise Silverton, deputy general secretary of the Royal College of Midwives, said: “This study shows the importance of vaccinating all pregnant women against seasonal flu.

“The RCM has advised its members to encourage pregnant women to be vaccinated and has also supported the campaigns for NHS staff to themselves be vaccinated thus protecting themselves, the women for whom they care and their own families.”