| ■ Doctors encouraged pregnant women to get flu shot | 2010.12.03 |
| About twice as many pregnant women as usual got flu vaccines last year during the H1N1 swine flu pandemic, most because their doctors urged them to do so, federal government researchers reported on Thursday. But still only about half of the women pregnant during the flu season got immunized, even though they are much more likely to become severely ill, die or lose their babies if they come down with the flu, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found. Ironically, many of the women who did not get flu vaccines said they were afraid for their own health or the health of their babies, the CDC found. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices both strongly recommend that pregnant women get influenza vaccinations to protect themselves and their babies. |