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'No shot for pregnant women': vaccine misconceptions persist among some doctors in Japan
2021-08-08 00:00:00.0     每日新闻-最新     原网页

       

       A pregnant woman who was once refused the COVID-19 vaccine said, "I didn't know why, and I wondered if I was wrong," on July 7, 2021. (Mainichi/Yukako Ono)

       TOKYO -- "No women who are breastfeeding or pregnant can get the (COVID-19) vaccine. It's my decision." So said a doctor to a pregnant woman he was examining. The expectant mother wanted the shots, but he turned her away.

       This happened even though Japan's Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare has stated that pregnant women can be vaccinated. Information available on adverse reactions is a mix of truth and fiction, and if there is a deep-rooted misunderstanding and distrust of the vaccines' safety even among medical professionals, the vaccination rate will probably not improve much.

       A 35-year-old woman, an office worker in the Kanto region, who is expecting a baby in early September, was looking for an opportunity to get vaccinated. She thought, "I can't avoid going out to work and for maternity checkups, and I'm worried about infections with the Olympics coming up."

       However, when she checked the vaccination schedule announced by her local government, she found that the reservation period started on Aug. 3. If the shots were in high demand, the schedule would be moved back, and there was no guarantee that she would be able to get the vaccine before giving birth.

       After a while, the university where her husband works decided to implement workplace vaccinations. Students as well as faculty members and their families were eligible.

       An employee of West Japan Railway Co. gets a COVID-19 vaccination in Abeno Ward, Osaka, on June 21, 2021. (Mainichi/Satoshi Hishida)

       The woman consulted with the doctor who was monitoring her pregnancy, and read the websites of the health ministry, the World Health Organization, the recommendations of the Japan Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology (JSOG), and research papers from overseas to confirm that pregnant women could also get vaccinated.

       But on the day of her vaccination, she couldn't believe her ears when the medical professor who handled her pre-shot medical consultation at the university said. "You're pregnant? Then you can't get the vaccine today."

       Even though the woman insisted that according to the health ministry, women who are pregnant, breastfeeding, or planning a pregnancy should be able to receive the vaccine, the professor did not listen. In the end, she went home without getting the shot.

       "The professor didn't explain the basis behind why I couldn't get the vaccine. It is up to the people themselves, including pregnant women, to decide whether they will get the vaccination or not. I couldn't understand why he was so adamant about refusing to vaccinate pregnant women. I felt helpless, as if no matter what I said, he would not listen to me," the woman recalled.

       After hearing about the incident, the woman's husband protested to the university, which changed its position and said, "We'll administer the vaccine on another day." Two weeks later, on July 9, the woman went to the university again and got her first shot.

       Professor Kei Kawana of Nihon University School of Medicine is seen at the campus in Tokyo on July 1, 2021. (Mainichi/Yukako Ono)

       The woman heard from her husband that the professor who conducted her medical consultation was originally opposed to vaccinating pregnant women. The professor explained to her husband, "I did what I thought was right to protect her, but I changed my mind if she wanted to be vaccinated knowing the risks."

       On June 17, the JSOG released a notice to pregnant women stating that they "can be vaccinated if they wish." The group commented on medical findings so far, saying, "According to information from overseas, where many pregnant women have already been vaccinated, the vaccine protects both expectant mothers and their babies, including those in the early stages of pregnancy. There are no reports of any serious complications for mother and child."

       The notice then pointed out that "in general, the advantages of getting this vaccine are thought to outweigh the disadvantages," and that infection in late pregnancy is more likely to cause serious illness and that there is no difference in vaccine reactions compared to non-pregnant people.

       Regarding reactions in pregnant women, a paper published in the New England Journal of Medicine by a group from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is instructive. Between Dec. 14, 2020 and the end of February 2021, it looked at the vaccine side effects rate after getting either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine and the impact on infants.

       The study compared the side effects in pregnant women aged 25 to 34 who received two doses of the vaccine with those of non-pregnant women. It showed that 91.9% of pregnant women and 90.5% of non-pregnant women experienced pain at the injection spot. Fatigue was reported by 72.3% of pregnant women and 76.3% of non-pregnant women, headache by 56.5% of pregnant women and 66.4% of non-pregnant women, and fever by 34.8% of pregnant women and 50.9% of non-pregnant women. In other words, there was no significant difference in any of the side effects.

       The study also found that the proportion of miscarriages and stillbirths after vaccination, as well as premature and low birth weight infants, did not differ from those reported in pregnancies before the coronavirus pandemic.

       The pre-vaccination screening questionnaire sheet required when receiving shots in Japan includes a question on whether the subject is pregnant.

       Dr. Kei Kawana, professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Nihon University School of Medicine, pointed out, "The existence of this question may lead to the misunderstanding that pregnant women should not be vaccinated. It might be a good idea to consider removing this question from the questionnaire."

       When the vaccination of health care workers began in Japan in February, there was a worldwide lack of information on the effects of the vaccine on pregnant women. "In order to track the health of those who had received the vaccine, it was necessary to collect all the information (on a person on the questionnaire sheet)," Kawana said.

       But the circumstances have changed. "More than 30,000 pregnant women have been vaccinated in the U.S. and other countries where large portions of the population have now been vaccinated, and efficacy and safety data have been obtained," the doctor continued.

       "This includes about 1,100 people in the early stages of pregnancy, but there has been no increase in defects or miscarriages. We would like to promote awareness so that people in Japan do not make decisions based on false or misleading information."

       On a related note, why is it that pregnant women infected with coronavirus are more likely to become seriously ill? Kawana explained.

       "During pregnancy, the uterus pushes up the diaphragm and presses on the lungs, making breathing more difficult than usual. This is why pneumonia, not just coronavirus infections, can become serious. There was a case where a pregnant woman whose family had been infected but was asymptomatic at first, later had to undergo an emergency C-section because her pneumonia symptoms worsened rapidly and her blood platelet count dropped."

       It seems the idea that people shouldn't have a COVID-19 vaccine because they are pregnant could put them at unnecessary risk.

       (Japanese original by Yukako Ono, Digital News Department)

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关键词: COVID     vaccine     professor     woman     Japan     pregnancy     Kawana     vaccinated     women     vaccination