COVID-19

Key facts

  • COVID-19 is an infectious disease that spreads easily from person to person. In some cases, it can cause serious illness and complications for pregnant women and their babies. 

  • Vaccines are the best way to protect you and your baby against COVID-19.

  • Having the COVID-19 vaccine during pregnancy is safe for both mother and baby.

Last updated on 18 December 2024.

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What is COVID-19?

COVID-19 is a viral infection caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. It spreads easily and is passed between people through sneezing, coughing, speaking, singing or breathing, or after touching contaminated surfaces or objects.1 

The most common symptoms of COVID-19 infection are a sore throat, cough, runny nose, headache and fever. 

In severe cases, COVID-19 can cause hospitalisation and death, including in children and adolescents.2 

Unvaccinated pregnant women are at an increased risk of severe disease from COVID-19.3

What will happen when you catch COVID-19?

Usual symptoms

  • COVID-19 most often causes a runny nose, headache, sore throat, sneezing, persistent cough and hoarse voice.4
  • Some people with COVID-19 infection get a loss of smell (anosmia) or taste (ageusia).4
     

Rare symptoms

  • Some people with COVID-19 experience severe illness, which may cause heart, brain, immune system (immunological) or breathing (respiratory) problems. Severe illness that leads to hospitalisation or death is uncommon in young people, but those living with a disability or medical risk condition may be at greater risk.5,6
  • Some people with COVID-19 can experience long COVID (post-COVID-19 condition), which is when symptoms that develop during or after COVID-19 infection become ongoing and continue for more than three months.6,7 These symptoms can include physical symptoms such as tiredness (fatigue), difficulty breathing (shortness of breath), chest pain and cough, memory and concentration issues, and psychological symptoms such as anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.7,8
What vaccine will protect my baby and I against COVID-19?

In Australia, pregnant women can receive a Pfizer (Comirnaty) or Moderna (Spikevax) vaccine that strengthens immunity to COVID-19.

When should I be vaccinated?

It is recommended that unvaccinated pregnant women receive a primary course of a COVID-19 vaccine. A primary course is one dose. 

Pregnant women who have previously been vaccinated against COVID-19 should discuss with their healthcare provider whether to have a further dose during their pregnancy.

Is there a risk my baby and I will catch COVID-19 from the vaccine?

No, there is no risk that you or your baby will catch COVID-19 from the vaccine, because the vaccine does not contain the live virus that causes the disease.

Will I have a reaction to the vaccine?
  • Pregnant women are no more likely to experience side effects to COVID-19 vaccination than people who are not pregnant.9,10
  • The most common side effects of COVID-19 vaccination are mild discomfort or pain where the injection was given; tiredness or lack of energy (malaise); headache; joint pain; and high temperature (fever).11 
  • Pregnant women are slightly more likely to report pain at the injection site and less likely to report tiredness or a high temperature (fever).11
Are there any rare and/or serious side effects to the vaccine?
  • Very rarely (0.001–0.003% of doses, or 1–2 in every 100,000), people receiving a vaccine that protects against COVID-19 can experience an inflammation of the heart muscle (myocarditis) or the lining of the heart (pericarditis).11 
  • Very rarely (0.0005% of doses given, or up to 5 episodes per 1,000,000), a dose of COVID-19 vaccine (Comirnaty Original and Spikevax Original) can cause an allergic reaction in people that affects their whole body, called anaphylaxis.12 This reaction usually happens within 15 minutes of the vaccination. It can be treated with an injection of adrenaline. People who have this reaction usually recover quickly and don’t experience any long-term effects.13

If you don’t seem to be getting better or you are worried, you can get help: 

  • from your doctor 
  • at your nearest emergency department 
  • by calling Health Direct on 1800 022 222.

  1. World Health Organization. Coronavirus disease (COVID-19): How is it transmitted? Geneva: WHO; 23 December 2021. Available from: https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/coronavirus-disease-covid-19-how-is-it-transmitted 
  2. Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care. COVID-19 Australia: Epidemiology Report 79. Communicable Diseases Intelligence 2023;47. Available from: https://doi.org/10.33321/cdi.2023.47.72
  3. Villar J, Conti CPS, Gunier RB et al. Pregnancy outcomes and vaccine effectiveness during the period of omicron as the variant of concern, INTERCOVID-2022: a multinational, observational study. The Lancet 2023;401:447-57. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(22)02467-9 
  4. Menni C, Valdes AM, Polidori L et al. Symptom prevalence, duration, and risk of hospital admission in individuals infected with SARS-CoV-2 during periods of omicron and delta variant dominance: a prospective observational study from the ZOE COVID Study. The Lancet. 2022 Apr 23;399(10335):1618-24. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(22)00327-0 
  5. Williamson EJ, McDonald HI, Bhaskaran K et al. Risks of covid-19 hospital admission and death for people with learning disability: population based cohort study using the OpenSAFELY platform. BMJ 2021;374. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n1592 
  6. Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care. Information for people with disability about COVID-19 vaccines. May 2024. Available from: https://www.health.gov.au/our-work/covid-19-vaccines/disability-sector/people-with-disability 
  7. World Health Organization. A clinical case definition of post COVID-19 condition by a Delphi consensus, 6 October 2021. Available from: https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/WHO-2019-nCoV-Post_COVID-19_condition-Clinical_case_definition-2021.1 
  8. Antonelli M, Pujol JC, Spector TD et al. Risk of long COVID associated with delta versus omicron variants of SARS-CoV-2. The Lancet 2022;399:2263-264 
  9. Ai-Ris YC, McMahan K, Yu J et al. Immunogenicity of COVID-19 mRNA vaccines in pregnant and lactating women. JAMA 2021;325:2370-380. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2021.7563 
  10. Gray KJ, Bordt EA, Atyeo C et al. Coronavirus disease 2019 vaccine response in pregnant and lactating women: a cohort study. American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology 2021;225:303. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajog.2021.03.023
  11. Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation. COVID-19. Australian Immunisation Handbook. Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care. Available from: https://immunisationhandbook.health.gov.au/contents/vaccine-preventable-diseases/covid-19
  12. Therapeutic Goods Administration. COVID-19 vaccine report – 02-11-23. November 2023. Available from: https://www.tga.gov.au/news/covid-19-vaccine-safety-reports/covid-19-vaccine-safety-report-02-11-23 
  13. Maltezou HC, Anastassopoulou C, Hatziantoniou S et al. Anaphylaxis rates associated with COVID-19 vaccines are comparable to those of other vaccines. Vaccine 2022;40:183-86. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vaccine.2021.11.066