The COVID-19 vaccination in 4,772 pregnant women in the province of Trento (North-East Italy). Characteristics of vaccinated women

Objectives: to investigate vaccine uptake among pregnant women during the 2nd and 3rd trimester of pregnancy. To de-scribe the factors infl uencing vaccine uptake during pregnan-cy, comparing sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of pregnant women who were vaccinated during the 2nd or 3rd trimester with those who were not vaccinated, despite having the indication for vaccination.Design: observational study with a cross-sectional approach and prevalence estimation in the population of women who gave birth in the study period, through record linkages be-tween the ministry information fl ow Birth assistance certifi -cate, the Regional vaccination register and the Italian fl ow for SARS-CoV-2 infections.Setting and participants: the study included all the 4,772 pregnant women living in Trentino (north-east Italy), who were in the 2nd or 3rd trimester of pregnancy between the 5th May 2021 and the 28th February 2022 and who delivered in Tren-tino.Main outcome measures: vaccine uptake among pregnant women during the 2nd and 3rd trimester of pregnancy. Results: 33.3% of pregnant women got vaccinated with at least one dose of vaccine during the 2nd or 3rd trimester of pregnancy. Independent factors associated with vaccine up-take in the 2nd or 3rd trimester were the mother’s citizenship, educational level, occupational status and age.Conclusions: the proportion of women who received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine during pregnancy was low. The results are important to start effi cient actions to promote vac-cination in pregnant women, particularly in the most vulnera-ble ones (unemployed, foreigners and with a low educational level), who appear to be less vaccinated frequently.