Willingness of seasonal influenza vaccination and associated factors among pregnant women in Shanghai

Results A total of 3 219 valid questionnaires were received., of which 10.90% of pregnant women were willing to receive influenza vaccination during pregnancy, 57.50% were unwilling to receive vaccination, and 31.59% were uncertain. Among those who were willing to receive the vaccine, 82.91% would take the initiative to know the relevant information of the influenza vaccine, 87.18% understood how the flu spreads, and 32.09% believed that pregnant women could receive the influenza vaccination at any stage of pregnancy; while among those who were unwilling or uncertain, the proportions of the above three questions were 47.06%, 83.95% and 17.80%, respectively.

Among pregnant women who were unwilling or uncertain, the main reason for their vaccine hesitation was the concern about the safety of the vaccine for pregnant women and fetuses during pregnancy. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that pregnant women with a higher education (OR=3.278, 95%CI：1.678~6.406，P=0.001), second trimester (OR=1.542, 95%CI: 1.159~2.054, P=0.003), third pregnancy (OR=2.318，95%CI：1.008~5.331, P=0.048), and previous influenza vaccination (OR=1.552, 95%CI: 1.119–2.152, P=0.008) were more willing to receive influenza vaccination than others.

Conclusion Pregnant women in Shanghai were relatively less willing to receive influenza vaccination during pregnancy, and the main related factor was the concern about vaccine safety.