claim: COVID-19 vaccines increase the risk of miscarriages and stillbirths
evidence: Available data shows that a pregnant woman who has a COVID-19 vaccine is not at an increased risk of having adverse pregnancy outcomes. Worldwide data, looking at many thousands of people vaccinated in pregnancy, has reported no increased risk of miscarriage, preterm birth or stillbirth following vaccination. Nor does vaccination increase the risk of a small-for-gestational age baby or developing congenital anomalies. One of these studies, from St George’s, University of London, published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology (AJOG) on 9 August 2021, compared pregnancy outcomes for women who had received a COVID-19 vaccine and those who had not. The study found there were no significant differences between the two groups, with no increase in stillbirths or premature births, no anomalies with development and no evidence of babies being smaller or bigger. [...] The UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency’s (MHRA) Yellow Card scheme collects and monitors information on safety concerns, such as suspected side-effects or adverse incidents involving medicines and medical devices, including vaccines. They have been analysing reports of miscarriage and stillbirth in pregnant women who have received the COVID-19 vaccines and have not identified any pattern to suggest the COVID-19 vaccines used in the UK, or any reactions to these vaccines, increase the risk of miscarriage or stillbirth.