Immunisations during pregnancy: whooping cough vaccine, RSV and the flu vaccine

27 August 2026

By Zoe Islip

A doctor talks to her pregnant patient in her hospital room

Immunisation against whooping cough (pertussis), respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and influenza (flu) is recommended during pregnancy to help protect you and your baby from serious infections.

Vaccination during pregnancy can provide protection for you and, importantly, can pass protective antibodies to your baby through the placenta. This helps protect your baby during the first few months of life, when they are particularly vulnerable to some infections.

Your obstetrician, midwife or immunisation provider can talk to you about which vaccinations are recommended during your pregnancy and when you should have them.

Whooping cough (pertussis)

What is whooping cough?

Whooping cough is a highly contagious bacterial respiratory infection that spreads through the air when an infected person coughs or sneezes, or through close contact with someone who has the infection.

Symptoms usually develop between seven and 10 days after infection. Whooping cough initially resembles a common cold before developing into intense bouts of coughing. Some people develop the distinctive ‘whooping’ sound when breathing in between coughs, although this does not occur in everyone.

The coughing episodes can be severe and may continue for several weeks or even months.

Why is whooping cough dangerous for babies?

Whooping cough can be particularly serious for newborns and young babies. Their airways are smaller and less developed, which can make it difficult for them to breathe during severe coughing episodes.

Complications can include difficulty feeding, dehydration, pneumonia and a lack of oxygen. Young babies are also at risk of requiring hospitalisation.

Babies cannot receive their first whooping cough vaccination until they are two months old, so vaccination during pregnancy provides an important opportunity to protect your baby from birth.

What can I do?

The whooping cough vaccine is safe to have during pregnancy. It is recommended during every pregnancy, even if you have received the vaccine during a previous pregnancy, because protection decreases over time.

Vaccination during pregnancy allows your body to produce antibodies that can cross the placenta and help protect your baby during their first months of life, before they are able to receive their own vaccinations.

Your obstetrician, midwife or immunisation provider can advise you on the recommended timing of your pertussis vaccination.

It is also recommended that people who will have close contact with your newborn, including partners and other carers, are up to date with their whooping cough vaccination.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)

What is RSV?

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common respiratory virus that can affect people of all ages. While it often causes mild, cold-like symptoms in adults and older children, it can cause more serious illness in babies and young children.

RSV can affect the lungs and breathing passages and can cause illnesses such as bronchiolitis and pneumonia. In Western Australia, RSV is a leading cause of hospitalisation in babies under six months of age.

Why is RSV dangerous for babies?

Babies, particularly those under six months of age, can be more vulnerable to severe RSV infection. Severe illness can affect their breathing and may require hospital care.

Protecting babies from RSV during their first months of life is particularly important because this is when they are most at risk of serious RSV disease.

What can I do?

In Australia, the maternal RSV vaccine Abrysvo is currently the only approved RSV vaccine for pregnancy and recommended for pregnant women from 28 weeks of pregnancy, during every pregnancy. It is funded under the National Immunisation Program.

One dose of Abrysvo during pregnancy helps your body produce antibodies against RSV. These antibodies cross the placenta to your baby, helping protect them from RSV from birth through to around six months of age, when they are most vulnerable.

It is recommended to have the RSV vaccine with at least two weeks between vaccination and birth, where possible, to allow time for protective antibodies to develop and pass to your baby.

Abrysvo can be safely given at the same time as other routine antenatal vaccines, including whooping cough and influenza vaccines. It is recommended during every pregnancy.

Flu (influenza)

What is influenza?

Influenza, commonly known as the flu, should not be confused with the common cold. It is a contagious respiratory viral infection that circulates each year, particularly during the cooler months.

Flu symptoms can include fever, cough, sore throat, muscle aches, headache and fatigue. Symptoms can be more severe and last longer than those associated with a common cold.

Pregnancy can increase the risk of serious complications from influenza.

Why is influenza dangerous during pregnancy?

When you have influenza during pregnancy, you may be at greater risk of developing complications such as bronchitis and pneumonia.

Having influenza during pregnancy can also increase the risk of complications for your baby, including premature birth and low birth weight.

Babies who contract influenza can also become seriously unwell.

What can I do?

The influenza vaccine is recommended during every pregnancy and can be given at any stage of pregnancy. It helps protect you from influenza and can also help protect your baby by passing protective antibodies across the placenta.

Pregnant women are eligible for a free influenza vaccine.

The flu vaccine does not contain live influenza virus and cannot give you influenza. Some people may experience mild side effects after vaccination as their immune system responds and develops protection.

Speak with your obstetrician, midwife, GP or immunisation provider about influenza vaccination during pregnancy and the best time to receive it.

Protecting you and your baby

Vaccination during pregnancy is an important way to help protect both you and your baby from serious infections.

Whooping cough, RSV and influenza vaccines can provide protection during pregnancy and, in the case of vaccination against whooping cough and RSV, help pass protective antibodies to your baby before birth.

Your obstetrician, midwife, GP or immunisation provider can provide advice about the vaccinations recommended during your pregnancy, including when and where you can receive them.