Timing of COVID-19 Vaccination in Pregnancy Examined

TUESDAY, Jan. 4, 2022 (HealthDay News) — COVID-19 vaccination before and during pregnancy is associated with detectable maternal anti-spike immunoglobulin (Ig)G levels at delivery, according to a study published online Dec. 28 in Obstetrics & Gynecology.

Yawei J. Yang, M.D., Ph.D., from Weill Cornell Medicine in New York City, and colleagues conducted a retrospective cohort study involving women with self-reported COVID-19 vaccination, including a booster dose before or during pregnancy. The association between timing of maternal vaccination and maternal and umbilical cord anti-spike IgG levels was examined.

Data were included from 1,359 vaccinated pregnant women, 20 of whom received a booster dose, and from 1,362 umbilical cord samples. The researchers found that among fully vaccinated women, maternal anti-spike IgG levels were detectable at delivery regardless of timing of vaccination throughout pregnancy; the highest anti-spike IgG levels in maternal and umbilical cord blood were seen in association with early third-trimester vaccination. Comparable maternal and cord blood antibody response was achieved with vaccination in early pregnancy among women with a history of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection and with third-trimester vaccination among pregnant women without a history of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Maternal anti-spike IgG levels were greater in association with a booster dose in the third trimester than with third-trimester vaccination in women with or without history of SARS-CoV-2 infection.

“Because immune correlates of protection are not well established at this time, following the recommended vaccination strategy is the optimal approach to protecting pregnant women and their fetuses from COVID-19,” the authors write.

Abstract/Full Text