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Effectiveness and safety of COVID-19 vaccines on maternal and perinatal outcomes: a systematic review and meta-analysis

COVID-19 vaccines are effective in preventing SARS-CoV-2 infection and related complications in pregnant women.

Authors

Keelin O'Donoghue

Year
2024
Journal Name
BMJ Global Health
Category
Journal Article
Keywords
COVID-19
Full Citation

Fernández-García S, Del Campo-Albendea L, Sambamoorthi D, Sheikh J, Lau K, Osei-Lah N, Ramkumar A, Naidu H, Stoney N, Sundaram P, Sengupta P, Mehta S, Attarde S, Maddock S, Manning M, Meherally Z, Ansari K, Lawson H, Yap M, Kew T, Punnoose A, Knight C, Sadeqa E, Cherian J, Ravi S, Chen W, Walker K, O'Donoghue K, van Wely M, van Leeuwen E, Kostova E, Kunst H, Khalil A, Brizuela V, Kara E, Kim CR, Thorson A, Oladapo OT, Mofenson L, Gottlieb SL, Bonet M, Moss N, Zamora J, Allotey J, Thangaratinam S; PregCOV-19 Living Systematic Review Consortium. Effectiveness and safety of COVID-19 vaccines on maternal and perinatal outcomes: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ Global Health. 2024;9(4):e014247. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjgh-2023-014247.

Link to Publication
https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjgh-2023-014247

Abstract

We examined all studies published between December 2019 and January 2023 to look at the effects of COVID-19 vaccines in women before or during pregnancy. These searches identified 67 eligible studies, involving 1,813,947 women. Overall, pregnant women fully vaccinated with any COVID-19 vaccine had 61% reduced odds of SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy and 94% reduced odds of hospital admission. For vaccinated pregnant women the risk of hypertensive disorders in pregnancy was reduced by 12%, while caesarean section was reduced by 9%, in the studies that looked at these outcomes. We observed an 8% reduction in the risk of neonatal intensive care unit admission in babies born to vaccinated versus not vaccinated women. In general, vaccination during pregnancy was not associated with increased risk of adverse pregnancy or perinatal outcomes. Pain at the injection site was the most common side effect reported (77%). This study concluded that COVID-19 vaccines are effective in preventing SARS-CoV-2 infection and related complications in pregnant women.

Pregnancy Loss Research Group

Pregnancy Loss Research Group, Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, University College Cork, Fifth Floor, Cork University Maternity Hospital, Wilton, Cork, T12 YE02, Ireland,

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