Vaccination in pregnancy to protect the newborn
File(s)
Accepted version
Author(s)
Male, Victoria
Jones, Christine E
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Infectious diseases pose a particular risk to newborns and there is a global need to protect this vulnerable group. Because of the challenges of developing vaccines that are effective in newborns, only the hepatitis B and tuberculosis vaccines are given in the first 28 days of life, and even those vaccines are mainly only offered to high-risk groups. Maternal antibodies cross the placenta and can afford some protection to the newborn, so an alternative strategy is vaccination in pregnancy. This approach has been successfully used to protect newborns against tetanus and pertussis, and vaccines that are primarily offered to protect the mother during pregnancy, such as influenza and COVID-19 vaccines, also provide some protection to newborns. A respiratory syncytial virus vaccine has recently been approved for use in pregnancy to protect newborns, and a new vaccine that will be offered during pregnancy to prevent Group B Streptococcus infection in infants is on the horizon. Here, we discuss the current vaccines that are offered during pregnancy and to newborns, the vaccines in development for future use in these groups and the challenges that remain concerning the delivery and uptake of such vaccines.
Date Issued
2025-09-01
Date Acceptance
2025-03-13
Citation
Nature Reviews Immunology, 2025, 25, pp.649-661
ISSN
1474-1733
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Start Page
649
End Page
661
Journal / Book Title
Nature Reviews Immunology
Volume
25
Copyright Statement
Copyright © 2025, Springer Nature Limited. This is the author’s accepted manuscript made available under a CC-BY licence in accordance with Imperial’s Research Publications Open Access policy (www.imperial.ac.uk/oa-policy)
License URL
Publication Status
Published
Date Publish Online
2025-04-23