Vaccination against influenza among pregnant women in southern Brazil and associated factors

Abstract

Abstract This article aims to identify the prevalence and factors associated with influenza vaccination in pregnant women. This is a cross-sectional study conducted in a municipality in the southernmost region of Brazil, which included all women giving birth in 2016. The outcome was having received the vaccine against influenza during pregnancy. Sociodemographic, behavioral and prenatal care characteristics and morbidities were analyzed. The analysis included sample description, the prevalence of vaccination for each independent variable and a multivariate analysis. Two thousand six hundred ninety-four pregnant women were interviewed, of which 53.9% reported having been vaccinated. Factors associated with increased prevalence of vaccination were mother’s higher schooling, prenatal care, tetanus vaccination and prenatal care performed in a public service. On the other hand, prenatal care onset after the first quarter reduced the prevalence of vaccination. The results point to the need to reinforce the importance of vaccination against influenza among pregnant women and among health professionals, regardless of the severity of the current epidemiological setting.