Swine flu blamed for rise in pregnancy deaths

Pregnant women are being encouraged to have the flu vaccine. Photo / Hawkes Bay Today

The swine flu virus is being blamed for a leap in the number of pregnant women dying in New Zealand and Australia.

New research has found 11 per cent of pregnant mothers admitted to intensive care in Australia later died of swine flu, or H1N1. Twelve per cent of their babies also died.

The study, published in the British Medical Journal this week, comes from analysis of intensive care records during last winter.

Of 209 women of child-bearing age placed in intensive care with swine flu, 64 were pregnant or had recently given birth. Seven of those died, including four in New Zealand.

Researcher Claire McLintock, from Auckland Hospital, said the small numbers in the survey meant they could not draw wide-ranging conclusions about the high number of New Zealand women who died.

McLintock said: "There's normally very few deaths in pregnancy, only a handful each year. Worldwide there will be a big spike in pregnancy-related deaths for 2009 because of H1N1."

None of the 64 pregnant women had received the flu vaccine, despite it being free and encouraged for pregnant women.

Christchurch woman Melissa McDonnell was six months' pregnant when she contracted swine flu.

She said she was unsure what effect the virus would have on her and her unborn baby.

"No one knew what it was going to be like for pregnant women.

"I didn't want to take the Tamiflu vaccine; but if I had broken into a serious fever, I would have."

McDonnell said eating well and lots of sleep helped her through. She now has a healthy 5-month-old daughter, Georgia.

Norma Campbell from the New Zealand College of Midwives was not surprised by the findings.

"Certainly we do know pregnant women are far more at risk and it would seem to be they are later in pregnancy.

"All through history women who are pregnant are more at risk of influenza and H1N1 seems to be particularly so."

Almost 15,000 people died during the 2009 swine flu pandemic. Nineteen New Zealanders are believed to have been among them.