Too many pregnant women are falling seriously ill with Covid-19 in the Dominican Republic. The worse cases are women that have not been fully vaccinated. Medics say that for those that are fully vaccinated, if catching Covid-19, the case will be mild.
The Ministry of Public Health says women who get pregnant are of the most vulnerable.
The Ministry reports there have been 45 cases of pregnant woman who have died for Covid-19 this year. Most of these had not been vaccinated.
The Ministry explains that many women have been lax about seeing their doctor after the onset of the pandemic and when they get pregnant they have also unilaterally decided against getting vaccinated.
The government says that while protection against the virus is not 100%, vaccination decreases the likelihood of people falling ill with the disease and will most likely keep the pregnant woman out of the hospital.
During the Wednesday, 13 October 2021 Covid-19 press conference, Dr. César López, the Dominican Obstetrics & Gynecology Society president, urged that gynecologists recommend the vaccines to their pregnant patients as of the second trimester of the pregnancy and to those that have given birth and are breastfeeding. Dr. Lopez said that deaths of pregnant women have occurred in women ages 16 to 45 years.
The Ministry of Public Health alerts that unvaccinated pregnant woman are more likely to catch the disease and become seriously ill than non-pregnant persons. The Ministry of Public Health urges pregnant women to get vaccinated. Hospitals are seeing a rising number of pregnant women infected with the virus.
In the Dominican Republic, as in the rest of the world, misinformation about the impact of Covid-19 vaccines on pregnant people and how it may affect fertility and menstruation has spread more than for other people, triggering warnings from health professionals that there are not enough pregnant women are getting jabbed, as reported in Euro News.
The US Center for Disease Control and Prevention states on its website that Covid-19 vaccines are well-tolerated by people who are pregnant, planning a pregnancy or lactating, further suggesting the benefits of having the vaccine far outweigh the risks.
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Diario Libre
Euronews
14 October 2021