I was on a biologic during pregnancy – can baby be vaccinated?
This page is still in progress . . .
If you were on a biologic (anti TNF, anti IL12/23 p40, or anti integrin) during pregnancy, even if you stopped in the 2nd or 3rd trimester, your baby would have been exposed and likely have some drug in their blood stream at birth.
Can baby be vaccinated?
Live vaccinations – recommend to AVOID
Similar to how how you cannot have any live vaccinations while on a biologic, your baby should NOT have any live vaccinations until at least 6 months of age, ideally not until 12 months of age. This is because some studies have detected biologic drug in the baby’s blood until even 9 months of age, and in one case 12 months of age.
This should not be a major issue as most live vaccines are given at 12 months of age. The only one to pay attention to is Rotavirus (an oral live attenuated vaccine that is meant to protect against the Rotavirus gastroenteritis). This only is given between 2 to 4 months of age, and thus if your baby skips the vaccination, they would NOT receive it (it is unsafe to give the vaccination after 6 months of age).
Inactivated vaccinations – recommend to GIVE
Inactivated vaccinations, such as HiB, tetatanus, hepatitis B, can be given. In fact, studies show that the baby’s response to these vaccinations are similar to baby’s who were not exposed to biologics.
More information on baby vaccinations
For more information on baby vaccinations, please see