Having a Covid-19 jab while pregnant will not lead to babies being stillborn or being born early, a new study suggests.
Academics in Canada looked at data on 85,162 births where half of the mothers had received a coronavirus vaccine during pregnancy.
They found that vaccination was not linked to a heightened risk of pre-term birth; it was not linked to babies being born smaller than expected and vaccination was not associated with babies being stillborn.
The findings suggest that vaccination against Covid-19 during pregnancy is not associated with a higher risk of preterm birth, small for gestational age at birth, or stillbirth
Report authors
The researchers said the findings were similar whichever trimester the woman was vaccinated in.
Most of the women had received an mRNA jab – namely those manufactured by Pfizer or Moderna.
The researchers found that whichever jab they had, the findings were consistent.
And the findings were similar regardless of the number of vaccine doses women received during pregnancy.
“The findings suggest that vaccination against Covid-19 during pregnancy is not associated with a higher risk of preterm birth, small for gestational age at birth, or stillbirth,” the authors wrote in The BMJ.
“These findings can help inform evidence based decision making about the risks and benefits of Covid-19 vaccination during pregnancy”.
