By Michaela Meade
A Bundoora reproductive and fertility doctor is encouraging pregnant women to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
Dr Luke Larmour said he wanted to reassure both pregnant women and those trying to conceive that the COVID-19 vaccines are safe and will not harm their unborn babies or chances of falling pregnant.
Dr Larmour said he was finding it challenging to convince some of his patients that the COVID-19 vaccine was safe, and that he was concerned those avoiding or delaying the jab were putting themselves at a greater risk of serious illness.
“The northern suburbs have some of the lowest vaccination rates in the state and with cases here continuing to rise, it’s becoming increasingly important for pregnant women to protect themselves and their unborn babies against the virus,” Dr Larmour said.
“There is no reason to put off vaccination if you’re pregnant and it’s safe to have at any stage of pregnancy or while you’re trying to conceive.”
Dr Larmour said there was no evidence to suggest that the COVID-19 vaccines caused infertility.
“Some women have questioned whether it is safe to have the vaccine before or while having IVF,” Dr Larmour said.
“We’ve even had some people contact us asking about egg freezing before vaccination and while there are valid medical reasons for women to freeze their eggs, it’s not necessary to go to these lengths in order to have the COVID vaccine.”
