Experts in the UK say that pregnant women are in the high risk category of Covid-19 and should be vaccinated as soon as possible to protect themselves and their babies.
The Vaccination and Immunization Committee (JCVI), which advises on vaccination in the UK, has added pregnant women to the vaccination list, which includes people at risk because of health problems.
Studies show that the rates of preterm births due to the virus are increasing. It was recorded that some pregnant women caught Covid-19 and died.
Vaccination during pregnancy is said to be safe and reduces the risk of serious illness.
It is also reported that the vast majority of those who become seriously ill are unvaccinated women, and the number of pregnant women who have been infected with Covid and have severe illness has increased since the beginning of the pandemic.
According to data from the UK Obstetrics Surveillance System, 1,436 pregnant women were hospitalized between May and October 2021, of whom only four percent were vaccinated. 17 pregnant women who caught Covid-19 died.
Data from August show that immunization rates are still low, with only 22 per cent of pregnant women in the UK receiving at least one dose of the vaccine.
JCVI President Professor Wei Shen Lim says that they recommend pregnant women to get the first, second and third dose of the vaccine, called the reminder dose, to protect themselves and their babies from the serious effects of Covid-19.
Dr Gayatri Amirthalingam of the Health Safety Agency says the vaccination program in the UK is effective and prevents serious complications from the disease.
“We now know that women who contract Covid-19 during pregnancy are at very high risk.”
In the UK, pregnant women have been given the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines since April, and the second dose is recommended eight weeks after the first dose.