Study: Babies of mums who had Covid-19 vaccine while pregnant better protected for six months

Babies born to mothers who received a Covid-19 vaccine during their pregnancy were significantly protected against the disease in their first six months of life, according to a local study by a team led by KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH). However, the study found there was no conferred benefit to the newborns from mothers who were vaccinated prior to their pregnancy. Assoc Prof Yung Chee Fu, a senior paediatric infectious diseases consultant at KKH who led the study, said: “Maternal Covid-19 vaccination remains the most effective way to protect mothers and their pregnancies, as well as their newborns after delivery, against severe outcomes from Sars-CoV-2 infection.” Babies in Singapore can only be vaccinated against Covid-19 from the age of six months. So any protection against the disease in the first half year of their lives has to be received from their mothers. Singaporeans and permanent residents gave birth to almost 22,000 babies between...