Covid Vaccine Acceptance Among Egyptian Pregnant Women

Although 2 years passed since the Covid 19 pandemic started, no specific treatment against the disease is available. According to WHO, more than two million deaths have been recorded worldwide . Therefore, it is important to avoid infection. In the absence of an effective treatment for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) non-pharmaceutical interventions are the only available methods of disease control. Social distancing, face masks, and personal hygiene are the most effective precautions, but maintaining these actions is not practicable in the long term. As a result, vaccination becomes the most effective eradication method. (1,2) Research into development of a vaccine for SARS-CoV-2 was undertaken immediately after the disease was identified.(3) The success of a vaccine depends not only on its efficacy, but also its acceptance.

However, vaccine hesitancy has become an important threat to global health, which was pointed out by WHO in 2019.(4) Several key factors behind vaccine hesitancy include fear or mistrust of the vaccine, underestimation of the value of the vaccine, and lack of access to the vaccine.(5) Pregnant women are at increased risk of severe disease, ICU admission, and ventilation when compared with non-pregnant patients of the same age.(6-8) Therefore, pregnant women are classified as a high-risk population for COVID-19 infection.(9) Regarding this information, pregnant women have not been included in any COVID-19 vaccine clinical trials to date.(10) Even so, public health authorities, including the ACOG and the SMFM recommend that COVID-19 vaccines should be available for pregnant women if they prefer to be vaccinated.(11,12)