The Case for Testing Zika Vaccines on Pregnant Women

Zika is a disease whose burden falls most heavily on pregnant women. In most people who come down with it, the virus is symptomless, and passes through the body with the person none the wiser. When symptoms do bloom, they are unpleasant, but not particularly dangerous to most. If someone who’s pregnant gets Zika, however, the consequences for the fetus can be devastating. The virus causes underdevelopment of the head and brain, known as microcephaly, and a hodgepodge of other symptoms, like eye damage and clubfoot, which are loosely categorized as Congenital Zika Syndrome.

For this reason, a working group made up of bioethicists, OB/GYNs, vaccinologists and others recently released for Zika vaccine development, in which they recommend that pregnant women should be included in clinical trials for Zika vaccines.