[Pregnancy and pandemic influenza A(H1N1) 2009. Current concepts for anaesthesia and critical care medicine]

Abstract

Pregnant women are particularly vulnerable to the pandemic influenza A(H1N1) 2009. Indeed, they are at high risk of developing a severe or fatal form of the disease. The physiological changes and the "immune deviation" from cellular to humoral immunity occurring during pregnancy are hypotheses to explain this vulnerability. Severe forms, mainly viral pneumonias, require an urgent prescription of an effective antiviral therapy. Preventive measures, mainly vaccination, are essential to avoid the appearance of these severe forms.