According to a large-scale international study, a Covid-19 infection with the omicron variant of the SARS-CoV-2 pathogen during pregnancy increases the risk of death in pregnant women – especially in unvaccinated women.
Risks were lower in vaccinated women. A corona vaccination effectively protects pregnant women from complications, the Geneva University Hospital involved in the study wrote in a statement on Wednesday.
A total of 41 hospitals in 18 countries participated in the study, which was published in The Lancet; Austrian institutions were not among them. The scientists examined data from 1,545 pregnant women infected with the omicron variant. These data were compared with the dossiers of 3,073 pregnant women without corona.
Obese women are at greater risk
In particular, the risk of pre-eclampsia – high blood pressure with kidney damage – was higher in women with severe symptoms. Overweight or obese women with severe symptoms were at greater risk, according to the study.
Vaccinated women, on the other hand, would have a low risk of being admitted to an intensive care unit. According to the study, complete vaccination proved to be the best form of prevention. The study also found that mRNA vaccines were the most effective. However, vector vaccines would also have offered adequate protection.
“This study clearly shows the benefits of vaccination during pregnancy. It supports our recommendation to include vaccination against Covid-19 in the routine care of pregnant women,” said co-author Begoña Martinez de Tejada Weber, of the University Hospital of Geneva, in the statement.
“It is concerning that four to seven percent of unvaccinated women who were diagnosed with the omicron variant during pregnancy developed severe disease,” said study leader José Villar of the University of Oxford.
Insufficient vaccination coverage
Although the omicron variant is generally less harmful than previous variants, the large proportion of unvaccinated pregnant women worldwide are still at high risk. Total vaccination coverage of pregnant women is still insufficient even in developed countries, the authors conclude.