Swine flu pandemic: pregnant women hit hardest
26 March 2010
Pregnant women with swine flu were 13 times more likely to be admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU) than were non-pregnant women during last year’s H1N1 epidemic (BMJ online first).
An analysis of all ICU admissions in Australia and New Zealand last winter found 64 pregnant women with confirmed swine flu were admitted and there were deaths in 11 per cent of women and 12 per cent of babies. None of the women had been immunised.
Lead author Dr Ian Seppelt, from the Australian and New Zealand Intensive Care Influenza Investigators, said although 11 per cent seemed low when compared with usual outcomes of respiratory failure in ICU, the figure was high when compared with any other obstetric condition.
During the study period, 209 women of child-bearing age were admitted to ICU, with 30 per cent pregnant or having recently given birth.
Last Reviewed: 26 March 2010
- 1. The ANZIC Influenza Investigators and Australasian Maternity Outcomes Surveillance System. Critical illness due to 2009 A/H1N1 influenza in pregnant and postpartum women: population based cohort study. BMJ 2010; 340: c1279. Available at: http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/340/mar18_3/c1279
