Influence of the COVID-19 pandemic and social media on the behaviour of pregnant and lactating women towards vaccination: a scoping review

Abstract

BackgroundPregnant women, foetuses and infants are at risk of infectious disease-related complications. Maternal vaccination is a strategy developed to better protect pregnant women and their offspring against infectious disease-related morbidity and mortality. Vaccines against influenza, pertussis and recently also COVID-19 are widely recommended for pregnant women. Yet, there is still a significant amount of hesitation towards maternal vaccination policies. Furthermore, contradictory messages circulating social media impact vaccine confidence.ObjectivesThis scoping review aims to reveal how COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccination impacted vaccine confidence in pregnant and lactating women. Additionally, this review studied the role social media plays in creating opinions towards vaccination in these target groups.Eligibility criteriaArticles published between 23 November 2018 and 18 July 2022 that are linked to the objectives of this review were included. Reviews, articles not focusing on the target group, abstracts, articles describing outcomes of COVID-19 infection/COVID-19 vaccination were excluded.Sources of evidenceThe PubMed database was searched to select articles. Search terms used were linked to pregnancy, lactation, vaccination, vaccine hesitancy, COVID-19 and social media.Charting methodsIncluded articles were abstracted and synthesised by one reviewer. Verification was done by a second reviewer. Disagreements were addressed through discussion between reviewers and other researchers.ResultsPregnant and lactating women are generally less likely to accept a COVID-19 vaccine compared with non-pregnant and non-nursing women. The main reason to refuse maternal vaccination is safety concerns. A positive link was detected between COVID-19 vaccine willingness and acceptance of other vaccines during pregnancy. The internet and social media are identified as important information sources for maternal vaccination.Discussion and conclusionVaccine hesitancy in pregnant and lactating women remains an important issue, expressing the need for effective interventions to increase vaccine confidence and coverage. The role social media plays in vaccine uptake remains unclear.

COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and attitudes of subjects with disability and their carers in Saudi Arabia: a cross-sectional study

“…Such concerns are not unheard of and have been previously reported. De Brabandere et al ( 29 ) showed in their systematic review that safety concern, among pregnant women, was the most important factor driving vaccine hesitancy, as was in Saudi Arabia too ( 19 ). Temsah and colleagues also reported the concern of long-term effect of the vaccine as a driver of vaccine hesitancy in Saudi Arabia ( 28 ), while the work of Aldossari et al ( 30 ) highlighted the concern of genetic abnormalities as a result of the vaccine.…”

The Factors Influencing Pregnant Women’s Selection of Media Sources to Obtain Information on COVID-19 in Japan in 2021

“…[8]. According to the scoping review by De Brabandere et al, maternal vaccination heavily relies on the internet and social media as important sources of information [9]. Meanwhile, medical and administrative professionals, including gynaecologists and obstetricians, have continued their efforts to disseminate information to the general public, who are not medical professionals, via society websites and other means in order to communicate accurate information to pregnant women.…”

“…Although it has been reported that "media" can influence the anxiety of pregnant women about COVID-19 and their vaccination behaviour [9], it is unclear how pregnant women with specific backgrounds select which media to obtain information about COVID-19 and vaccination. Although it has already been reported that COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy can suppress severe symptoms in pregnant women who have been infected with SARS-CoV-2 [10,11], there are a certain number of pregnant women who have not received the vaccine due to vaccine hesitancy.…”

“…Although it has already been reported that COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy can suppress severe symptoms in pregnant women who have been infected with SARS-CoV-2 [10,11], there are a certain number of pregnant women who have not received the vaccine due to vaccine hesitancy. It has been noted that the information flowing from various media publications and social media affects people's behavior regarding vaccination, including vaccine reluctance [9,12] It has also been noted that erroneous information about vaccines was already being disseminated via the internet prior to the COVID-19 epidemic [13].…”

Promoting the Use of Modern Communication Tools to Increase Vaccine Uptake in Pregnancy

“…The COVID-19 pandemic taught us that maternal vaccine hesitancy might be countered with additional efforts to reduce parental anxiety and increase vaccination adherence rates. Attempts should include a revised communication strategy based on ad hoc intervention and simplified language, spread by social media or video conferencing apps for webinars, via one-on-one counseling, or in small groups with the opportunity to receive vaccination contextually. Our experience in Milan, Italy, was characterized by monthly webinars, open chat to ask and obtain answers regarding concerns about safety, efficacy, and the rapid development and approval of the COVID-19 vaccine, as well as the opportunity to obtain the vaccines .…”