More Fetal Losses Than Expected After Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccination In Israel: Study

A new study in Israel has found a higher-than-expected number of miscarriages and other forms of fetal loss associated with COVID-19 vaccinations. The study analyzed electronic health records of 226,395 pregnancies between 2016 and 2022 and found 13 fetal losses for every 100 pregnant women who received a COVID-19 vaccine during weeks eight to 13 of pregnancy, four more than expected. Most people in Israel, including pregnant women, received the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. The researchers cautioned that more information is required to confirm a causal link between the vaccines and fetal losses. The study also found that when pregnant women received a COVID-19 vaccine during weeks 14 to 27, the number of fetal losses was lower than expected. An additional analysis of pregnant women who received an influenza vaccine found a lower-than-expected number of fetal losses. The researchers suggested that the results could be due to "healthy vaccine bias," where people who receive vaccines are typically healthier than those who do not. The study's authors include a researcher who advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on vaccines and a doctor who works for the Food and Drug Administration. The study has not been peer-reviewed and was published as a preprint.