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COVID-19 Vaccinated Women Deliver Infants With Protective Antibodies

February 8, 2022 • 2:38 pm CST
(Precision Vaccinations News)

A peer-reviewed study from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) published on February 7, 2022, found that most infants born to COVID-vaccinated mothers had persistent anti-S antibodies at six months, compared with infants born to mothers with a SARS-CoV-2 virus infection. 

This study included individuals vaccinated with two doses of an mRNA vaccine or infected at 20 to 32 weeks' gestation when the transfer of antibodies through a women's placenta has shown to be at its peak.

After two months, 98% of the infants (48 of 49) born to vaccinated mothers had detectable protective Immunoglobulin G (IgG) levels, the most common antibody found in the blood.

At six months, the researchers looked at 28 infants born to vaccinated mothers and found that 57% (16 of 28) still had detectable IgG.

That was compared with just 8% (1 of 12) born to infected mothers.

"While it's still unclear just how high the titer needs to be to completely protect an infant from COVID, we know anti-spike IgG levels correlate with protection from serious illness," says Andrea Edlow, MD, MSc, a Maternal-Fetal Medicine specialist at MGH, Director of the Edlow Lab in the Vincent Center for Reproductive Biology and co-senior author of the publication published in The JAMA Network.

"The durability of the antibody response here shows vaccination not only provides lasting protection for mothers but also antibodies that persist in a majority of infants to at least six months of age."

"Many interested parties from parents to pediatricians want to know how long maternal antibodies persist in infants after vaccination, and now we can provide some answers. In addition, we hope these findings will provide further incentive for pregnant people to get vaccinated, especially with the emergence of new variants of concern like Omicron," added Dr. Edlow in a press statement.

This study's finding is important since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 through January 2022, the U.S. CDC has confirmed 287 deaths in infants (0-4 yrs) related to COVID-19.

The authors note limitations to their research, including the small study cohort, delays in follow-up with the infected group (due to participants' availability and COVID-19 surges in Boston, and reporting of titers as opposed to clinical outcomes.

This study's corresponding Author: Andrea G. Edlow, MD, MSc, Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Massachusetts General Hospital, [email protected].

Medical Review by

Our Trust Standards: Medical Advisory Committee

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