A woman in South Florida who received a dose of the coronavirus vaccine during pregnancy recently gave birth to the first baby known to have Covid-19 antibodies “after the maternal vaccination,” said two pediatricians.
The doctors presented their discovery in a pre-printed article, which means that this statement has not yet been peer-reviewed.
Drs. Paul Gilbert and Chad Rudnick said the mother, a frontline health professional, received her first dose of the Moderna vaccine in January, at 36 weeks pregnant.
The woman gave birth to a “vigorous and healthy” girl three weeks later. The researchers analyzed the baby’s umbilical cord blood and the antibodies “were detected … at the time of delivery,” the newspaper said. “Thus, there is potential to protect and reduce the risk of Sars-CoV-2 infection with maternal vaccination.”
“As far as we know, this was the first time in the world that a baby was born with antibodies after vaccination,” Gilbert told West Palm Beach affiliate ABC. “We tested the baby’s umbilical cord to see if the mother’s antibodies passed to the baby, which is something we see happening with other vaccines given during pregnancy.”
The document makes it clear, however, that more research is needed to determine whether babies are protected by these antibodies, writing: “We urge other researchers to create pregnancy and breastfeeding records, as well as conduct studies on the efficacy and safety of Covid- 19 in pregnant and breastfeeding women and their children. “
“This is a small case where there will be thousands upon thousands of babies born to mothers who have been vaccinated in the coming months,” Rudnick told the local ABC station. “More studies have to determine how long this protection will last. They have to determine at what level of protection or how many antibodies a baby needs to be circulating to give them protection. “
Gilbert and Rudnick told the affiliate that their article had been accepted for publication and that they were waiting for it to be officially posted on the magazine’s website.