DO COVID VACCINES REDUCE FERTILITY?

At the end of January the National Institute of Health (NIH) released a study that looked at the effect of the COVID vaccine on fertility. 

Data was analyzed from an internet-based pregnancy study that included more than 2,000 vaccinated and unvaccinated couples in the U.S. and Canada.

Results concluded that the chances of conception did not change with either partner’s vaccination status. 

Dr. Amelia Wesselink who headed the research at Boston University School of Public Health said “Our study shows for the first time that COVID-19 vaccination in either partner is unrelated to fertility among couples trying to conceive through intercourse. Time-to-pregnancy was very similar regardless of vaccination status.”

The study did show, however, find that if the male partner had tested positive for Covid-19 infection within 60 days prior to his partner’s menstrual cycle, conception was less likely to occur during that time.

 

 

DO CHILDREN TRANSMIT COVID-19?

There’s so much raging debate these days about whether or not it’s safe for schools to reopen.  As we head into the final weeks of summer, deeper understanding of this issue clearly has implications for the opening of schools, daycare centers and summer activities such as camps, etc.

As parents, it might be helpful for you to know what researchers have discovered.

Until recently, we really didn’t know the extent to which children were the transmitters of the virus. The  American Academy of Pediatrics provided some preliminary answers in the July issue of their  journal Pediatrics. which featured a study by authors, Benjamin Lee, M.D. and William V. Raszka, Jr., M.D., both pediatric infectious disease specialists on the faculty of the University of Vermont’s Larner College of Medicine.

The issue of children infecting parents was an important consideration. The first indicators came from a Swiss study of confirmed cases of Covid-19, all of whom were children under the age of 16. Of the 39 households evaluated, contact tracing confirmed that only 8% of adult infections were transmitted by children to adults. This strongly suggested that the primary source of infection was the adult, not the child.

Other studies have shown similar results. A study that was conducted in China in January and February identified 65 confirmed Covid-19 cases where the children had been infected by an adult family member.

Another study was done in a school setting in New South Wales, Australia where confirmed cases included 9 students and 9 staff members, all of whom had close contact with the other 735 students and staff. That study stated that ”only 2 secondary infections were identified, including none of the adult staff.”

Researchers are still studying why children appear to be mostly non-transmitters.

Comments from the article suggested that “there should be strong consideration to develop strategies that allow schools to open.” As of now, this issue has been quite politicized which further divides our nation making it difficult to know how to proceed.

 

The article in its entirety can be viewed here.