RSV vaccination for pregnant women
RSV (RS virus) is a respiratory virus that typically occurs in the autumn and winter months and can lead to serious illness requiring hospitalisation, especially among the youngest infants. The risk of hospitalisation and intensive care increases the younger the child is.
RSV vaccination of pregnant women protects the infant against RSV disease in the first months of life. Therefore, the Danish Health Authority recommends that all pregnant women who give birth during the RSV season be vaccinated against RSV by their own doctor in pregnancy week 32.
The offer of vaccination is available from 1 October 2025 to 31 January 2026.
If the 2026 Finance Bill is passed, free vaccination against RSV will be offered annually to all pregnant women at their third pregnancy check-up with their doctor from 1 May to 31 January.
It is recommended that there be at least two weeks between vaccination against whooping cough and vaccination against RSV disease.
Questions and answers
1. Why does the Danish Health Authority recommend vaccination against RSV disease for pregnant women?
The Danish Health Authority recommends vaccination against RSV for pregnant women to prevent serious illness requiring hospitalisation due to RSV in infants. A seasonal vaccination programme will protect the youngest and most vulnerable infants born at term during the RSV season, which typically runs from October to March.
2. Can you become seriously ill from RSV?
In most cases, RSV causes mild cold-like symptoms. In some cases, particularly in infants, RSV can cause serious illness requiring hospitalisation. Infants are at risk of serious illness because their immune systems are still immature and because their small airways can become blocked due to inflammation and mucus production as a result of RSV infection.
Deaths due to RSV infection are very rare in Denmark.
3. When during pregnancy does the Danish Health Authority recommend vaccination?
The RSV vaccine is approved for use in pregnant women between pregnancy weeks 24 and 36 (24+0-35+6).
The Danish Health Authority recommends that the vaccine be given during the preventive pregnancy check-up with your own doctor in pregnancy week 32.
Vaccination against RSV is recommended for pregnant women who are due to give birth between July and March, so that the youngest infants born at term are protected against RSV.
If the pregnant woman is at risk of giving birth prematurely, she may, after a specific assessment, be vaccinated earlier in her pregnancy, but no earlier than pregnancy week 24 (24+0).
Vaccination can be given no later than pregnancy week 36 (35+6), as otherwise the vaccine cannot be expected to have its full effect before the baby is born.
4. What is RS virus?
RSV is an abbreviation for respiratory syncytial virus, which is a respiratory virus that is a common and frequent cause of respiratory infections in the autumn and winter seasons from October to March. RSV is transmitted through small droplets from coughing, sneezing and similar.
5. How many children become seriously ill due to RSV?
Since 2015, approximately 1,300 children under the age of one have been hospitalised each year due to RSV infection. The risk of hospitalisation and intensive care increases the younger the child is. Among infants hospitalised with RSV disease before the age of three months, approximately 40% require intensive care.
6. How and how well does the vaccine work?
Infants born to mothers who have been vaccinated against RSV are protected against severe RSV disease because they receive antibodies from their mother while they are still in the womb.
Vaccination of pregnant women reduces the risk of severe lower respiratory tract infection due to RSV in infants by approximately 70% in the first six months of life.
The vaccine protects the child for at least the first six months.
7. Is the vaccine safe, and what are the most common side effects?
The most common side effects are tenderness at the vaccination site, headache and muscle pain. Serious side effects such as severe allergic reactions are very rare. Vaccination is not associated with an increased risk of harm to the foetus or newborn baby. The risk of serious side effects is very small.
8. Do we have experience of using the vaccine?
The vaccine (Abrysvo) was approved by the European Medicines Agency in August 2023. The vaccine was approved on the basis of a scientific study involving more than 7,000 pregnant women.
The vaccine has been introduced into vaccination programmes in the United States, Australia, Argentina, the United Kingdom and France, among other countries. It is estimated that more than 1.3 million pregnant women worldwide have been vaccinated against RSV, and experience confirms that the vaccine is safe for both the pregnant woman and the foetus.
9. Can pregnant women be vaccinated against whooping cough and RSV at the same time?
It is recommended that there be at least two weeks between vaccination against whooping cough and vaccination against RSV disease to ensure the best possible effect of the vaccines.
A single study has shown that the body’s immune response to the whooping cough vaccine may be slightly lower if the vaccines are given at the same time. However, it is not known whether this has any effect on how well the vaccines protect. The risk of side effects was the same regardless of whether the vaccines were given at the same time or separately.
10. What vaccinations are offered during pregnancy?
The following vaccinations are currently offered to pregnant women:
Whooping cough vaccination is offered in pregnancy week 25 by your own doctor throughout the year.
RSV vaccination is offered in pregnancy week 32 by your own doctor from May to January (starting in October 2025).
Influenza vaccination is offered in the second and third trimesters from 1 October to 20 December 2025, for example at a regional vaccination centre as part of the seasonal vaccination programme.
If you have a chronic disease or condition that puts you at risk of becoming seriously ill with COVID-19, you are also eligible for vaccination against COVID-19 from 1 October to 20 December, regardless of whether you are pregnant or not. Read more here
11. Would you like to read more about the Danish Health Authority’s recommendation on RSV?
Based on the Danish Health Authority’s recommendation, the government has proposed that funds be allocated in the upcoming Finance Bill for a seasonal vaccination programme against RS virus for pregnant women from 2026. It is recommended that pregnant women with a due date between July and March be vaccinated against RSV at their third routine pregnancy check-up with their doctor in pregnancy week 32.