Pregnant women exposed to Ebola should be vaccinated

An independent advisory body convened by the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends pregnant and lactating women from the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo to be vaccinated against the deadly Ebola virus. The latest WHO figures report 853 cases of Ebola in the DRC, including 521 deaths since the beginning of the epidemic in August.

To date, more than 80,000 people have been vaccinated against the Ebola virus in the conflict-prone provinces of North Kivu and Ituri during the current outbreak. The vaccine is still in the experimental stage. But since 2015, it has been given to thousands of people in Africa, Europe and the United States.

Vaccine efficacy studies are inconclusive. However, they indicate that the serum is safe and protects people against Ebola. Based on the accumulated evidence, the Immunization Expert Panel recommends continuing Ebola ring vaccination in the DRC.

Ring vaccination is a strategy that prevents the spread of the disease by only vaccinating people who may be infected with the virus. WHO spokesperson Tarek Jasarevic said the experts advised pregnant women at high risk of infection and the death of Ebola to be vaccinated.

"So, this goal, this vaccination of women would protect them, provide them with more protection. But we also know that if we use this ring vaccine, women in the vaccinated community have a low risk. So it's really a risk / benefit ratio, and we hope that the use of the vaccine in pregnant women will generate data for the future, "said Jasarevic.

The expert group recommends that the vaccine be administered to pregnant women in the second or third trimester, as well as to badfeeding women and babies under one year of age.

Experts also recommend that one or more of the three new experimental Ebola vaccines be tested in areas adjacent to the affected areas. They say that pregnant and lactating women should be included in these trials.

The WHO says that all vaccinated pregnant women will be subject to close surveillance until the birth of their baby in order to detect any undesirable effects.