A natural experiment assures us that this is unlikely to be the case as people who are infected with SARS-CoV-2 shortly before conceiving or early in pregnancy are no more likely to miscarry than their uninfected peers 2. If such cross-reactivity did occur, vaccines on all platforms, as well as natural infections, would be expected to be associated with placental pathology. With respect to these concerns, it is worth noting that the first human trials of mRNA vaccines began in 2006, so there have been 15 years during which any long-term problems arising from the platform itself could have come to light 1.Īlthough many of the rumours that COVID-19 vaccines might damage fertility centre specifically on the mRNA platform, probably because they first emerged in the context of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, the specific claim is that antibodies recognizing the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein can cross-react with the human placental protein syncytin 1 and thereby damage the placenta. Indeed, many people are hesitant specifically about receiving an mRNA vaccine, as this is a relatively new platform. It is understandable that people are apprehensive, especially about a new vaccine: the vast majority of adverse events can be ruled out in clinical trials, but the short time frame during which these take place, especially for COVID-19, means that events that could potentially occur decades into the future are harder to discount. In 2003, such concerns resulted in a boycott of polio vaccination in northern Nigeria more recently, they have contributed to hesitance in accepting the human papillomavirus vaccine. This is not the first time that unfounded rumours about vaccines causing infertility have circulated. The post was quickly removed but the rumours that it started continue to spread and a survey carried out by ‘Find Out Now’ found that more than a quarter of young women in the United Kingdom would decline the vaccine, citing concerns about its effect on fertility. In December 2020, a blog post appeared online claiming, falsely, that a senior employee at Pfizer was concerned that antibodies elicited by COVID-19 vaccines could attack the placenta.
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