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Influenza and Pregnancy
WE CURRENTLY HAVE THE SEASONAL FLU VACCINE IN STOCK__ COME IN AND RECEIVE THIS VACCINE IF YOU ARE CURRENTLY PREGNANT. (WE ARE OUT OF THE FLU VACCINE UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE)
IF THERE IS A RED X, WE HAVE THE VACCINE IN STOCK. IF IT IS NOT CHECKED, PLEASE CHECK BACK IN ONE WEEK. WE WILL UPDATE THIS SITE AS CHANGES OCCUR IN OUR SUPPLY.
Seasonal Influenza
Seasonal influenza affects between 5-20% of the population annually. More than 200,000 people are hospitalized from influenza related illnesses with approximately 36,000 people dying annually from influenza related complications.
As with the recent H1N1 (swine flu) epidemic, risk factors for severe infection are young age, people who live with or provide care to the young or old, pregnant women, health care providers, and people with chronic medical conditions (such as asthma, COPD, diabetes, renal or hepatic disease and immunosuppressed conditions – medically induced or infectious).
The signs and symptoms of seasonal influenza include runny nose, muscle aches, fever, dry cough, sore throat and headache.
Complications from seasonal influenza include super infection with bacterial pneumonia (which is why high risk groups should also receive 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine -- PPSV-23).
Pregnancy increases the risk for influenza complications for the mother and increases number of medical visits for respiratory illnesses during influenza season compared with non-pregnant women. Fortunately, pregnant women with respiratory hospitalizations do not have an increase in adverse perinatal outcomes or delivery complications nor is there an increase in delivery complications, including fetal distress, preterm labor, and cesarean delivery. Furthermore, infants born to women with laboratory-confirmed influenza during pregnancy do not have higher rates of low birth weight, congenital abnormalities, or lower Apgar scores compared with infants born to uninfected women.
Influenza vaccines, aka “the flu shot,” are manufactured in several preparations - trivalent inactivated influenza vaccine (TIV) and live, attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV). Trivalent inactivated influenza vaccine should be used for pregnant women. Live attenuated influenza vaccine may be used for all non-pregnant women up to 49 years of age. TIV is contraindicated and should not be administered to persons known to have anaphylactic hypersensitivity to eggs or to other components of the influenza vaccine unless the patient has been desensitized.
Vaccination against seasonal influenza should begin in September and continue through January or February since peak influenza activity is generally seen between December and January.
OUR OFFICE HAS BEEN DISTRIBUTING THE THIMERASOL-FREE (AKA “PRESERVATIVE-FREE”) VACCINE TO OUR PREGNANT PATIENTS AND WILL CONTINUE TO DO SO FOR AS LONG AS OUR SUPPLIES LAST.
This season’s influenza vaccine also contains particles of the H1N1 strain, and therefore provides protection against the likely leading strains of influenza A and B virus for this season.
According to the CDC with all of it’s available research, no preference is indicated for use of TIV (pregnancy safe vaccine) that does not contain thimerosal as a preservative for any group recommended for vaccination, including pregnant and postpartum women. LAIV (live, attenuated vaccine) is not licensed for use in pregnant women, but postpartum women can receive either LAIV or TIV. Pregnant and postpartum women do not need to avoid contact with persons recently vaccinated with LAIV.
Additional information regarding seasonal influenza vaccination recommendations may be found at: http://www.cdc.gov/flu/
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Stephen Wells M.D. All Rights Reserved
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