Immunity to Tetanus Vaccination in Pregnant Women in Zanjan Province, Northwest of Iran

Background and Aims: Despite the fact that neonatal tetanus has been eradicated all over the world, it is still a significant health problem in some developing countries. The disease can even result in death. This is a worrying problem but it can easily be prevented by vaccination of the mothers. Vaccinating every pregnant woman with, at least, one dose of tetanus toxoid would be an affordable way to protect against neonatal tetanus and would be a step toward eliminating the mortalities that continue to occur due to this preventable disease. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the immunity in pregnant women in Zanjan province in Iran. Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, ۵۷۶ pregnant women were surveyed. Firs the women's serums were separated. Then tetanus antibody was measured in their serums using Immunoaffinity Chromatography Assay. Results: Results indicated that ۹۵ percent of these pregnant women who had received vaccine had acquired immunity but the remaining ۵ percent had no immunization. Conclusions: Not only vaccination is important in women, but effectiveness of vaccination is also vital for successful immunization. It is proposed that more attempts should be made in order to gain affordable immunization.

Keywords:

Anti-tetanus antibody , pregnant women , Vaccination