Pregnant? You Need a Whooping Cough Shot!

Español: Información sobre la tosferina, o whooping cough, para las mujeres embarazadas

Whooping cough (sometimes called pertussis) is a serious disease that can cause babies to stop breathing. Unfortunately, babies must be 2 months old before they can start getting their whooping cough vaccine. The good news is you can avoid this gap in protection by getting the whooping cough vaccine during your pregnancy. The whooping cough vaccine is also called the Tdap shot because it protects against tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis. Healthcare professionals recommended that you get vaccinated between the 27th and 36th week of your pregnancy (preferably during the earlier part of this time period). By getting vaccinated, you will pass antibodies to your baby so she is born with protection against whooping cough.

You need to get a whooping cough vaccine while you are pregnant

The whooping cough vaccine is recommended during your third trimester so that your body can create antibodies and pass them to your baby before birth. These antibodies will help protect your newborn right after birth and until your baby gets his own first whooping cough vaccine at 2 months of age. The whooping cough vaccine used to be recommended for women to get in the hospital after giving birth. Unfortunately, the babies did not benefit from the protective antibodies and could still get whooping cough from others. During the first few months of life, your baby is most vulnerable to serious complications from this disease.

The whooping cough vaccine is safe for you and your baby

The whooping cough vaccine is very safe for you and your baby. The most common side effects are mild, like redness, swelling or pain where the shot is given in the arm. This should go away within a few days. You cannot get whooping cough from the vaccine. The vaccine does not contain any live bacteria.

Doctors and midwives who specialize in caring for pregnant women agree that the whooping cough vaccine is safe and important to get during the third trimester of each pregnancy. Getting the vaccine during pregnancy does not put you at increased risk for pregnancy complications like low birth weight or preterm delivery.

You need a whooping cough shot during every pregnancy

The amount of antibodies in your body is highest about 2 weeks after getting the vaccine, but then starts to decrease over time. That is why the vaccine is recommended during every pregnancy — so that each of your babies gets the greatest number of protective antibodies from you and the best protection possible against this disease.

Every year babies in the United States get whooping cough

Babies are at greatest risk for getting whooping cough. We used to think of this as a disease of the past, but it’s making a comeback. Recently, we saw the most cases we had seen in 60 years. Since 2010, we see between 10,000 and 50,000 cases of whooping cough each year in the United States. Cases, which include people of all ages, are reported in every state.

Whooping cough is very dangerous for babies

Whooping cough is very serious for babies. Many babies with whooping cough don’t cough at all. Instead it can cause them to stop breathing. About half of babies younger than 1 year old who get whooping cough are hospitalized. Since 2010, about 10 to 20 babies die from whooping cough each year in the United States. Most whooping cough deaths are among babies who are too young to be protected by their own vaccination.

It is safe to breastfeed after getting the whooping cough vaccine

You can pass some whooping cough protection to your baby by breastfeeding. When you get a whooping cough vaccine during your pregnancy, you will have protective antibodies in your breast milk that you can share with your baby as soon as your milk comes in. However, your baby will not get protective antibodies immediately if you wait to get a whooping cough vaccine until after you give birth. This is because it takes about 2 weeks after getting vaccinated before your body develops antibodies.

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