PLEASE GET THE COVID-19 VACCINATION: A MESSAGE FROM YOUR DOCTORS
At Melbourne IVF we strongly recommend that all our patients wanting to conceive have the COVID-19 vaccination. Reports demonstrate no known safety risk for patients in the reproductive age, including those wanting to conceive, early pregnancy or late pregnancy.
The risks of COVID-19 infection include very severe disease in pregnancy and some possible impacts on fertility.
There are now many international studies reporting on the safety of vaccines for people in the reproductive age group and those who are pregnant. The studies suggest that after COVID-19 vaccination:
- Egg quality is not compromised
- sperm quality is not compromised
- no increased risk of miscarriage
- no increased risk of abnormalities in babies
- protective immunity in babies from antibodies in maternal vaccination
Pregnant people who become infected with COVID-19 have a much higher risk of severe illness and death.
The Department of Health, The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RANZCOG) and the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) have all released statements about COVID-19 vaccinations for women wanting to conceive and for pregnant women, advising prompt vaccination.
Read the joint RANZCOG and ATAGI statement.
Watch the below video which includes an informative discussion on the COVID-19 Vaccine and safety in fertility and early pregnancy. The video features A/Prof Kate Stern, an associate professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of Melbourne and the Royal Women's Hospital, as well as a Senior Fertility Specialist at Melbourne IVF. She is joined by A/Prof Michelle Giles, an Infectious Disease Physician and Immunisation Expert.