Meta-analysis: COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy is safe and beneficial for mother and infant
Vaccination is associated with better neonatal outcomes without added maternal risk, according to research presented during the American Academy of Pediatrics 2025 National Conference & Exhibition
2025-09-26
(Press-News.org) DENVER — An analysis of data from over 1.2 million pregnant individuals found that those who received a COVID-19 vaccination had a 58% lower risk of being infected with the virus, as well as a lower risk of experiencing a stillbirth or preterm birth, according to research presented during the American Academy of Pediatrics 2025 National Conference & Exhibition at the Colorado Convention Center from Sept. 26-30.
For the study, “Safety and Efficacy of Maternal COVID-19 Vaccination During Pregnancy: Umbrella Review & Meta-Analyses,” the author conducted a systematic search of PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Embase from Jan. 1, 2021, to Sep. 13, 2023. She included 23 meta-analyses inclusive of over 200 studies and 1,250,000 pregnant individuals with documented COVID-19 vaccination.
“We found that the COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy offers significant protections to newborns and mothers,” said Nikan Zargarzadeh, study author and Harvard University research fellow. “This information can help support informed decision-making for pregnant individuals and their care teams.”
The review found those who received a COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy had an 8% lower risk of preterm birth before 37 weeks and a 34% lower risk of preterm birth before 28 weeks. Vaccination was also associated with an 25% lower risk of stillbirth and an 9% lower risk of neonatal intensive care admission, as well as a 17% lower risk of congenital anomalies, according to the study abstract. There were no increased risks observed for maternal hospitalization, intensive care admission, gestational diabetes, hypertension, or pre-eclampsia.
The authors did not receive financial support for this research.
Study author Nikan Zargarzadeh is scheduled to present her research, which is below, on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025, 3:45 p.m. – 3:55 p.m. in the Colorado Convention Center, Mile High Ballroom 2A-3A.
In addition, Ms. Zargarzadeh will be among highlighted abstract authors who will give a brief presentation and be available for interviews during a press conference from noon-1:30 pm Saturday, Sept. 27, in the National Conference Press Room, CCC 705/707. During the meeting, you may reach AAP media relations staff at 303-228-8338.
Please note: only the abstract is being presented at the meeting. In some cases, the researcher may have more data available to share with media, or may be preparing a longer article for submission to a journal.
# # #
The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 67,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical specialists dedicated to the health, safety and well-being of infants, children, adolescents and young adults. For more information, visit www.aap.org. Reporters can access the meeting program and other relevant meeting information through the AAP meeting website at http://www.aapexperience.org/
Program Name: 2025 Call for Abstracts
Submission Type: Section on Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine
Abstract Title: Safety and Efficacy of Maternal COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy: Umbrella review & meta-analyses
Nikan Zargarzadeh
Boston, MA, United States
The safety & efficacy of COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy are critical not only for maternal and fetal health, but also for informing public health policy and preparedness for future pandemics. To date, no comprehensive umbrella review has synthesized meta-analysis evidence on both the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccination in this population. This study aims to address this significant knowledge gap.
We conducted a systematic search of PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Embase from 01/01/2021 to 09/13/2023. We included 23 meta-analyses inclusive of over 200 studies and 1,250,000 pregnant individuals with documented COVID-19 vaccination. Risk Ratios (RRs) and pooled proportions were calculated using R, employing random-effects models and Egger’s test for publication bias (PROSPERO registration: CRD42024519174).
COVID vaccination during pregnancy reduced maternal COVID-19 infection rates (Risk Ratio [RR] 0.41, 95% CI 0.30-0.57), stillbirth (RR 0.75, 95% CI 0.58-0.98), PTB ≤37 weeks (RR 0.92, 95% CI 0.86-0.99). No significant risk differences were observed among other outcomes, except for a marginal increased risk of cesarean delivery (RR 1.07, 95% CI 1.01-1.12).
Through this umbrella review of comprehensive meta-analyses, including data from over 1.2 million pregnant individuals, we demonstrate significant benefits of COVID-19 vaccination with high confidence and no associated increase in risk. These quantifiable benefits can support informed shared decision-making and enhance public health communication strategies during this and future pandemics.
END
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
2025-09-26
Strong Northern Lights-like activity is the standout feature of today’s weather report, which is coming at you from a strange, extrasolar world, instead of a standard TV studio. That is thanks to astronomers from Trinity College Dublin, who used the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope to take a close look at the weather of a toasty nearby rogue planet, SIMP-0136.
The exquisite sensitivity of the instruments on board the space-based telescope enabled the team to see minute changes in brightness of the planet as it rotated, which were used to track changes in temperature, cloud cover and chemistry.
Surprisingly, ...
2025-09-26
Delta.g, a UK-based quantum technology company, has raised £4.6 million in an oversubscribed seed round to accelerate the development and deployment of its gravity sensing platform. The round was led by Serendipity Capital with participation from NSSIF, and existing investor SCVC.
Quantum sensing has emerged as one of the first quantum technologies with the greatest potential to deliver immediate real-world impact, enabling breakthrough advances in subsurface imaging, navigation, and environmental monitoring. Yet across infrastructure, ...
2025-09-26
Bacteria are constantly moving by help of motility organs called flagella or pili to colonize new niches. Also, bacteria can exchange information, like “speaking to each other”, and thus acquire new abilities through the exchange of DNA materials. These motility organs play important roles in DNA uptake to exchange genetic information between different bacteria, allowing what’s so-called genomic plasticity. Therefore, bacterial motility organs contribute to bacterial pathogenicity, colonizing ...
2025-09-26
Remote sensing object detection is a rapidly growing field in artificial intelligence, playing a critical role in advancing the use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) for real-world applications such as disaster response, urban planning, and environmental monitoring. Yet, designing models that balance both high accuracy and fast, lightweight performance remains a challenge. UAVs often capture images where objects appear in different sizes, angles, and lighting conditions, all while operating on devices with limited computing power. This creates the need for innovative ...
2025-09-26
In recent years, measles has made a resurgence globally. In England, 2024 saw the highest number of confirmed measles cases since 2012, resulting in the declaration of a national incident. One reason for this is falling vaccination rates, prompted — to some extent — by the success of established measles vaccination programmes, which has reduced public awareness of the contagiousness and potentially serious complications of measles.
Measles is often erroneously thought to be a childhood disease. Yet approximately one-third of the 2,911 cases confirmed in England in 2024, and six of the seven measles-related deaths since 2000, were ...
2025-09-26
Yuanyuan Wang and Wenlei Zhu's group at Nanjing University, China, and Yuehe Lin at Washington State University, USA, recently reported the development of a three-dimensional ordered mesoporous carbon skeleton with Ni single atom support using the superlattice blotting strategy for efficient electrocatalytic hydrogen production. Firstly, they derived an ordered mesoporous framework based on finite element simulation, which is of great significance for promoting uniform gas distribution, stabilizing the gas-liquid-solid interface of nanoscale hydrophilic surfaces, and enhancing mass transfer kinetics. Then, the proposed superlattice blotting ...
2025-09-26
The Biochar Myth-Buster
We’ve all heard the story: biochar cleans water by adsorbing pollutants—trapping them like a sponge. Or, in fancier setups, it acts as a catalyst to help oxidants like hydrogen peroxide break down toxins. But Dr. Gao’s team asked a bold question: What if biochar can degrade pollutants all by itself? Turns out—it can. And it’s been doing it quietly all along.
The Electron Ninja: Biochar’s Secret Power
The secret lies in electron transfer—a natural ability of biochar that’s been overlooked for years. Think of it like this: instead of just catching a bad guy (adsorption), biochar can now take them ...
2025-09-26
A sticky, toxic by-product that has long plagued renewable energy production may soon become a valuable resource, according to a new review published in Biochar.
When biomass such as crop residues, wood, or other organic matter is heated to produce clean energy and biochar, it also generates a thick liquid known as bio-tar. This tar easily clogs pipelines, damages equipment, and poses environmental risks if released into the atmosphere. For decades, researchers have sought ways to eliminate or neutralize it.
Now, a team led by scientists at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences argues that instead of being treated as waste, bio-tar can be converted into “bio-carbon”—a ...
2025-09-26
Beneath our feet, an invisible world of electron exchanges quietly drives the chemistry that sustains ecosystems, controls water quality, and even determines the fate of pollutants. A new review published in Environmental and Biogeochemical Processes sheds light on how electrons travel through soils and sediments across surprisingly long distances—sometimes spanning centimeters to meters—reshaping our understanding of underground environments and offering new strategies for pollution cleanup.
Redox reactions—the give-and-take of electrons between chemical species—are fundamental to life and environmental stability. They govern how nutrients cycle, ...
2025-09-25
A British led study published by The BMJ today provides detailed data on the pattern and severity of traumatic injuries and medical conditions seen by international healthcare workers deployed to Gaza during the ongoing military invasion.
Healthcare workers describe “unusually severe” traumatic injuries including complex blast injuries, firearm related injuries, and severe burns. Many respondents with previous experience of conflicts reported that the pattern and severity of injuries in Gaza were greater than those they had encountered in previous warzones.
It’s thought to be the first study ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
[Press-News.org] Meta-analysis: COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy is safe and beneficial for mother and infant
Vaccination is associated with better neonatal outcomes without added maternal risk, according to research presented during the American Academy of Pediatrics 2025 National Conference & Exhibition
