The risks relating to pregnancy
I'm going to talk here about the risks associated with getting H1N1 swine flu during pregnancy. Although it's not been officially confirmed, it's understood that the first person with H1N1 swine flu to die in Britain was a 38-year-old mother who had given birth prematurely.
The patient, who has not yet been named, was admitted to hospital with swine flu and . The child was born at 29 weeks gestation.
Few details have yet been confirmed by the Scottish authorities; they have so far said only that the patient had "underlying health conditions". Her death is very sad news, and everyone's thoughts must be with her family, friends and the medical staff who cared for her.
Before I go on to discuss the elevated risks of swine flu associated with pregnancy, it's important to stress, as I do repeatedly, that the vast majority of people who contract this virus have a mild disease which lasts a few days. Many will have no symptoms at all.
The official figure for the UK is 1,261 cases and this is the first death. But there will have been hundreds - maybe many thousands - of cases which have gone unrecorded. So instead of being one death in 1,261 cases, it is undoubtedly a lot less than that.
With around 700,000 babies born in the UK each year, I know that many women and their partners will be concerned. So please be reassured that the vast majority of pregnant women who get infected will be okay, as will their unborn children.
Having put all those caveats in place, it is true that pregnancy is a risk factor for swine flu.
The director general of the World Health Organization, Margaret Chan, had this to say about pregnancy last week, :
"Without question, pregnant women are at increased risk of complications. This heightened risk takes on added importance for a virus, like this one, that preferentially infects younger age groups."But remember that pregnancy is also a risk factor for seasonal flu, especially in the last trimester. Flu poses a threat both to the mother and to the unborn child. Among the complications, the fever associated with flu can lead to a premature delivery. three years ago that pregnant women should be among the groups offered a seasonal flu jab.
When a vaccine for H1N1 swine flu becomes available in the autumn, pregnant women may well be among the first "at risk" groups offered the jab.
What about antiviral drugs and pregnancy? During pregnancy, the concern with any drug is that it may pass through the placenta and affect the baby. There is a risk factor especially during the first trimester.
Oseltamivir (currently best known as the brand name Tamiflu) is not usually recommended for pregnant women because the are unknown. But the lesser-known inhaled drug Relenza (a brand name for zanamivir) can be prescribed on medical advice, according to the Department of Health.
:
"An expert group reviewed the risk of antiviral treatment in pregnancy, which is extremely small - much smaller than the risk posed by the symptoms of swine flu."
There are more details on pregnancy and swine flu on .
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