Influenza (flu) vaccine is offered at any stage of pregnancy during the ‘flu season’ from October to March.
Whooping cough vaccine is recommended to be received from 16 weeks of pregnancy. Whooping cough is a severe lung infection that causes the baby or child to be very ill, producing a violent cough that makes it very difficult for the child to breathe in causing the ‘whooping’ noise as they try. It can be very distressing and serious, often requiring hospitalization.
RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus) is a relatively new vaccine that provides defence against lower respiratory tract infections such as bronchiolitis, bronchitis and pneumonia. These can be very serious in babies and young children, leading to long episodes of hospitalization. It is recommended to have this vaccine from 28 weeks of pregnancy.
All three of these vaccines are available from Warwick hospital maternity outpatients department. You will be sent an appointment for your RSV vaccine but they are also available from the drop in clinic. The Covid vaccine is only available from your GP
None of the vaccines that you are offered during pregnancy are ‘live’ which means they cannot give you the condition that you are being vaccinated for. You may display a normal immune response such a slight headache or temperature or feeling a bit achey for 24-48 hours. It is safe to take paracetamol for these mild side effects. If you have a severe reaction to a vaccine, it will be within 20-30 minutes of having the injection so if you are concerned, you are welcome to wait at the centre before carrying on with your day. Some people may notice a slight redness, swelling or tenderness around the injection site, this should resolve within 24-48 hours.
It is advisable to have these vaccines for every pregnancy as the antibodies produced soon become inactive if you are not exposed to the virus. It is only new antibodies that are transferred from you, through the placenta, to the baby, offering some protection for the baby during their first weeks of life.
It is safe to have more than one vaccine on the same day.
For further information please visit the NHS page
https://www.nhs.uk/pregnancy/keeping-well/vaccinations/
