TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Popular Reads
Top Results
No results found. Please check your search term and try again
Can't find what you're looking for?
View all search results
Popular Reads
Top Results
No results found. Please check your search term and try again
Can't find what you're looking for?
View all search resultsHealth experts urge maternal vaccination to protect pregnant women, babies
Among the vaccines that can be given to pregnant women are those that inoculate against pertussis and tetanus, as antibodies against such diseases can be passed down to the baby through the placenta and breast milk.
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
A pregnant woman receives the Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine on Aug. 19, 2021, in Surabaya, East Java, during an accelerated vaccination program including pregnant women. (AFP/Juni Kriswanto)
V
accination during pregnancy may help support the health of pregnant women, who have a higher risk of getting sick and facing severe disease outcomes if they become ill, as well as their children, experts have said.
Unlike non-pregnant individuals, pregnant women often cannot access certain treatments and diagnostic options. Maternal immunization helps fill that gap by providing protection for mothers during pregnancy.
The vaccination can also help protect newborns and young infants who are highly susceptible to infection and other disease, said public health researcher Molly Sauer of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
“In the first weeks and months of life, a baby’s immune system is still developing and not yet mature. It leaves them at high risk of serious illnesses such as RSV,” Sauer said during a webinar to celebrate World Immunization Week from April 24 to 30 on April 21.
RSV, or Respiratory Syncytial Virus, is a common, contagious virus that causes mild, cold-like respiratory symptoms. Although most people recover within one to two weeks, the virus can cause severe disease in infants, young children and older adults, often leading to pneumonia or bronchitis.
She added that mothers pass antibodies from immunization to their children through the placenta and breast milk, providing early protection for the newborns.
