H1N1 influenza increases the risk of pneumonia and respiratory failure, which can lead to premature birth or death during pregnancy, so pregnant women should take extra precautions to prevent the virus and get vaccinated after the third month of pregnancy.
The vaccine reduces the risk of infection and reduces your symptoms, but does not prevent the onset of infection. Therefore, pregnant women who have been vaccinated with flu-like symptoms, such as fever, cough and sore throat, should tell their doctor for immediate evaluation.
- The symptoms are the same as those of the common flu.
- But more severe and include high fever.
- Headache.
- Sore throat.
- Discomfort and some women report vomiting and diarrhea.
- Coughing and pain are also common.
To differentiate these symptoms from those in the common flu, it is necessary to take into account the time of outbreaks or epidemics, if your loved ones are also infected with this virus and also the intensity of symptoms, which in H1N1 are much more intense and make it more difficult. daily tasks, difficult to work or study, which require absolute rest.
The warning signs are
If you have shortness of breath and fever does not decrease with medications such as acetaminophen, you should go to the hospital right away. Your doctor may order blood tests, chest x-rays, and ultrasounds to check for pneumonia or other respiratory complications and if your baby is OK.
The treatment is exactly the same as abroad, with the use of drugs like Tamiflu, which should be indicated by the obstetrician after evaluation of the benefit/risk ratio.
It is very important for a pregnant woman to see a doctor or visit the health center within 48 hours after the onset of symptoms, as Tamiflu is scientifically proven to be more effective when taken at the first signs of H1N1 influenza.
Because of the increased risk of preterm birth, pregnant women should go to the hospital and, if they are at the end of pregnancy, they may need to remain hospitalized until the disease is cured.
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To prevent the flu, it is recommended to wash your hands constantly, avoid public places with many people such as cinemas and shopping malls, and stay away from people with flu or cold signs and symptoms. However, the best way to prevent this is by vacuning in health centers.
If the woman becomes infected with H1N1 influenza virus at the end of pregnancy or postpartum, in the first 6 months of the baby’s life, avoid being too close to the baby to avoid catching, as it is more severe when it affects babies up to 6 months old, who cannot be treated with Tamiflu and cannot be vaccinated either.
Thus, the woman can continue to breastfeed, as there is no evidence that the virus passes through breast milk, however, whenever she is near the baby or breastfeeding, it is safer for the woman to always wear a surgical mask purchased from a pharmacy to cover her nose and mouth, or to remove the milk with a milk extractor for another person to give to the baby.