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Pregnant women at higher risk of complications from H1N1 -- As the Kenyan health authorities continue to trade accusations with independent health monitors over the accuracy of the confirmed cases of swine flu, a preliminary study indicates that hundreds of expectant mothers could suffer from poor surveillance of the disease. |
August 04, 2009 |
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As the Kenyan health authorities continue to trade accusations with independent health monitors over the accuracy of the confirmed cases of swine flu, a preliminary study indicates that hundreds of expectant mothers could suffer from poor surveillance of the disease.
According to the study conducted by the US? Centre for Disease Control (CDC), pregnant women infected with swine flu have a much higher risk of severe illness and death, confirming a trend that has worried global health experts.
?We see a fourfold increase in hospitalisation rates among pregnant women compared to the general population,? Dr Denise Jamieson, a CDC official said on Wednesday.
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Heavy toll
While pregnant woman have always been at higher risk, the new H1N1 virus is taking an exceptionally heavy toll, the researchers have said.
?We?re seeing a relatively large proportion of deaths among pregnant women. We report 13 per cent in the paper, but that is a very unstable number based on a small number of deaths reported,? said Dr Jamieson, whose study appears in the journal Lancet.
In Kenya, the director of public health, Dr Shanaaz Shariff, maintains that the only confirmed swine flu case in the country remains that of the UK student that was recently diagnosed in Kisumu.
Global public health watchdog World Health Organisation (WHO) has however lumped Kenya together with South Africa as the two countries on the continent with highest number of swine flu cases, with both reporting 12 laboratory confirmed cases of the disease each.
Poor access to information about the proportion of the population infected and their geographical spread means many people are likely to expose themselves to the infectious disease unknowingly, thus risking their lives. WHO recommends immediate medication upon contact with infected persons.
Increased susceptibility
The CDC study is based on reports of the deaths of six pregnant women out of 45 total deaths related to the H1N1 virus reported to the American organisation between April 15 and June 16.
All of the women, the organisation notes, were healthy prior to infection, and all developed pneumonia and needed to be put on a ventilator.
Dr Jamieson said the organisation is seeking complete information on all the 302 deaths that have officially been reported to the CDC from the new H1N1 virus.
?Among those, we have relatively complete information on 266 deaths. And of those, 15 have been among pregnant women, which is about 6 per cent,? she said, adding however that pregnant women do not need to change the way they live just because of the new H1N1 flu.
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