Some women are concerned about getting the covid vaccine because they either are pregnant or plan on getting pregnant.
Dr. Paul Klotman, president and CEO of the Baylor College of Medicine says getting pregnant is all the more reason a reason to get the shots.
"Out of 100 thousand cases of people who were pregnant and infected, 17 percent of those were hospitalized. It turns out if you're pregnant and get covid, it's a lot worse than if you're not pregnant."
He adds the risk of getting a severe illness from covid with pregnancy lasts for 42 days after pregnancy. "The other thing is it's high risk for pre-term birth delivery if you get covid while you're pregnant."
Related
Changes that occur in the body during pregnancy that increase risk for severe illness from respiratory viral infections like COVID-19 can continue after pregnancy. For example, increased risk for developing blood clots during pregnancy can continue after pregnancy and increase the risk for severe illness.
Other outcomes, such as suffering a miscarriage, have been reported.
In Brazil, more than 1,600 pregnant or post-partum women have died from Covid.
Klotman says the vaccine will not harm pregnant women and their unborn babies, and rumors about the shots causing sterility and infertility are completely unfounded and without merit.
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