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Respiratory virus season – including flu, COVID, and RSV – are coming, but vaccinations can help protect mom and baby

(PRUnderground) September 27th, 2024

Respiratory illness season is approaching, and Intermountain Health experts are encouraging everyone to review recommended vaccinations – especially vulnerable populations such as women who are pregnant, and the babies they are carrying.

Babies can receive disease protection from their mom during pregnancy. Newborns do not yet have fully developed immune systems, making them particularly vulnerable to infections.  Getting vaccines and immunizations during pregnancy helps the mom’s body create antibodies that are passed through the placenta to the growing baby.  These antibodies will help protect babies during those first few, vulnerable months of life.

The Centers for Disease Control and the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOG) currently recommend four vaccines or immunizations during pregnancy:

1. Influenza (flu)
2. COVID-19
3. Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV)
4. The Tetanus, Diphtheria, and Pertussis combined vaccine (Tdap)

All of these are respiratory infections can be dangerous for newborns and can cause severe illness and possible hospitalization. Tragically some infants die each year from these infections. Influenza, COVID-19 and RSV infections are caused by viruses, while Pertussis is caused by bacteria.

“Women who are pregnant or recently postpartum have an increased risk of getting very sick or needing to be hospitalized if they contract the flu or COVID-19. For this reason, we continue to recommend seasonal vaccination for influenza and COVID-19. These vaccines can be given at any time during pregnancy and can also be protective to infants after delivery,” said Dr. Jennifer Merriman, an OB-GYN and maternal fetal medicine specialist with Intermountain Health.

“Additionally, we recommend vaccination with Tdap and the RSV vaccine in the third trimester of pregnancy to help protect infants from illness with RSV and/or whooping cough, both of which can be dangerous for young infants,” she added.

It’s important to talk with your prenatal care provider to know what vaccines and immunizations are recommended for you, and when to get them. They know your medical history and can explain both the benefits and any risks to these vaccinations for you.

Influenza and COVID-19 vaccinations can be given any time during pregnancy and are available now

The influenza vaccine is important to protect both mom and the baby from the flu. It can be given anytime throughout the pregnancy to make sure mom is protected. The 2024 influenza immunizations are available now. It is recommended to be vaccinated early in the fall to allow for maximal protection during the flu season, as it takes two weeks for the vaccine to have its full effect.

It’s also recommended that the latest COVID -19 vaccine formulation be given now. The COVID vaccine is also important to protect both the mom and the baby from serious illness from COVID-19.

The vaccine for whooping cough and the monoclonal immunization for RSV are recommended later in pregnancy

• The pertussis vaccine or Tdap is given to pregnant women primarily to protect the newborn infant from pertussis or whooping cough. It’s recommended to be given between 27 and 36 weeks of pregnancy.

• Vaccination with Tdap is recommended during each pregnancy.

• The RSV monoclonal infant immunization is given during pregnancy, primarily to protect the newborn infant against respiratory syncytial virus after delivery. It is recommended to be given between 32 and 36 weeks of pregnancy.

• Most pregnant patients should be vaccinated for RSV from September through January if they are expected to deliver October through March, to provide protection for their baby throughout RSV season.

• Mothers of infants born outside RSV season may not need to be vaccinated, and the RSV monoclonal preventive immunization (nirsevimab) will be recommended for these infants.

• The maternal RSV vaccine may be co-administered with other vaccines recommended for a healthy pregnancy and infant, including COVID-19, influenza, and Tdap.

The benefits of passive immunity

When these vaccines and immunizations are given to the mother late in their pregnancy, the mother provides passive immunity to the baby. This occurs because the mother produces protective antibodies that are transferred to the baby through the placenta prior to birth.  These protective antibodies to help protect the infant for the first few months of their life.

Mothers have always provided this type of immunity to their newborns by producing antibodies to any harmful bugs they are exposed to that may be circulating during their pregnancy. This normal process of passive immunity is one reason why babies are not overwhelmed with infections as soon as they are born.

Anyone who is around a young baby needs to be up to date on their vaccines ideally two or more weeks prior to close contact with the baby.

Newborns do not yet have fully developed immune systems, making them particularly vulnerable to infections.  Older kids and adults can spread viruses to babies, even if they don’t feel very sick. Because of this, anyone who is around babies should be up to date on all recommended vaccines. This includes parents, siblings, and any other caregivers, like grandparents, or babysitters. Anyone who needs vaccines should get them at least two weeks before meeting the baby because it takes about two weeks to develop antibodies after vaccination.

For more information visit intermountainhealth.org or the ACOG or CDC website on vaccines during pregnancy.

About Intermountain Health

Headquartered in Utah with locations in six states and additional operations across the western U.S., Intermountain Health is a nonprofit system of 33 hospitals, 385 clinics, medical groups with some 4,600 employed physicians and advanced care providers, a health plans division called Select Health with more than one million members, and other health services. Helping people live the healthiest lives possible, Intermountain is committed to improving community health and is widely recognized as a leader in transforming healthcare by using evidence-based best practices to consistently deliver high-quality outcomes at sustainable costs. For more information or updates, see https://intermountainhealthcare.org/news.

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Original Press Release.