Brazil Asks Women To Postpone Pregnancy Until The New Curve Flattens

Brazil has admonished women to postpone pregnancy until the worst of the pandemic has passed, claiming that the new variants of the virus in the country have had a bigger impact on the expecting women.

“We do not have a national or international study, but the clinical view of experts shows that the new variant has a more aggressive action on pregnant women,” Secretary of Primary Health Care of the Brazilian health ministry Raphael Camara said on Friday. 

On the contrary, United Kingdom on the same day, said that pregnant women of any age in the country will be offered either the Pfizer/BioNTech or Moderna Covid-19 vaccines in a new advice published by UK’s vaccine advisers.

In reference to the updated guidance: “Although clinical trials on the use of COVID-19 vaccines during pregnancy are not advanced, the available data do not indicate any harm to pregnancy. JCVI [The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation] has therefore advised that women who are pregnant should be offered vaccination at the same time as non-pregnant women, based on their age and clinical risk group.”

It further stated that “there is now extensive post-marketing experience of the use of the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines in the USA with no safety signals so far. These vaccines are therefore the preferred vaccines to offer to pregnant women.”

“Pregnant women who commenced vaccination with AstraZeneca, however, are advised to complete with the same vaccine,” added the guidance.