# 3567
The CDC has recommended for some time that pregnant women contact their doctors regarding the possible use of antivirals if they suspect they’ve contracted the novel H1N1 virus.
As in pandemics of the past, we are seeing a much greater impact on pregnant women than the general population with this virus, with a LANCET study earlier this week (see Lancet Study: Pregnancy And H1N1) suggesting a 4 fold increase in hospitalization rates for pregnant women.
Today, we get an even stronger recommendation from the WHO (World Health Organization) – one meant for an international audience – urging that pregnant women receive immediate antiviral treatment if hit by swine flu.
They also urge that pregnant women be given priority to receive any vaccine that may become available. ACIP earlier this week made the same recommendation for US vaccine priorities.
WHO advises swine flu drugs for pregnant women
Agence France-Presse | 07/31/2009 9:26 PM
GENEVA - The World Health Organization is recommending that pregnant women should have immediate access to antiviral drugs to treat swine flu because they appear to be more vulnerable, a spokeswoman said Friday.
"WHO is recommending that in the countries where there is a wide spread of A(H1N1) pandemic flu that pregnant women ... should be provided with adequate care and treatment immediately," said| WHO spokeswoman Aphaluck Bhatiasevi.
"Antiviral drug is recommended for treatment of pregnant women," she told journalists.
Bhatiasevi said the advice was based on studies among pregnant women in the United States and reports from several countries indicating that pregnant women were "more at risk of A(H1N1) infection."
Experts from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found in a study published on Wednesday that pregnant women could be at increased risk from swine flu compared with the general public.
While there aren’t many studies out there, antivirals are believed to be reasonably safe for pregnant women. The CDC has two sets of guidance regarding pregnancy and the novel H1N1 virus.
Information for Pregnant Women in Education, Child Care, and Health Care
What Pregnant Women Should Know About H1N1 (formerly called swine flu) Virus
