So far, many pregnant women in Great Britain have been sceptical about vaccination against the coronavirus. But that is about to change: The government strongly advises vaccination – based on a new study.

The delta variant is widespread in Great Britain. That is why the British health authorities have asked all pregnant women to get vaccinated against the coronavirus. The senior midwife of the health service in England published a corresponding open letter to pregnant women, general practitioners and obstetricians.

This pointed to a new study that found that unvaccinated pregnant women have increased the risk of serious illness since the delta variant became rampant in the country. The vaccine could protect pregnant women from having to go to the hospital. It could save the lives of mother and child.

According to a new study from the University of Oxford, the proportion of pregnant women hospitalized with moderate to severe infections has increased “significantly” since the Delta variant appeared in May. Ninety-nine per cent of them were not vaccinated, and every tenth had to be treated in intensive care.

“It is excellent news that so few vaccinated pregnant women with Covid-19 have been hospitalized,” said Marian Knight, head of the study published online last week. “But it is very worrying that the hospital admissions of pregnant women with Covid-19 are increasing and that they seem to be more affected by the Delta variant.”

The authorities in England have recommended pregnant women to get vaccines from BioNTech / Pfizer or Moderna since April. However, many women refuse vaccination because they say they fear harming the baby or because they are waiting for more information.

Mothers could be “reassured”, assured the study director. The corona vaccine is safe. The babies in the mothers’ wombs also benefit from it because the antibodies are also passed on to them.

Image by Health Watch Lambeth / Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY-SA 3.0)