Is Monkeypox Vaccine safe while breastfeeding?
Here is what NIH LactMed, the U.S. National Library of Medicine's authority on medicines and breastfeeding, reports about Monkeypox Vaccine. This is a summary of that source — not our own verdict.
Effects on the breastfed infant
Relevant published information was not found as of the revision date.
Effects on milk supply
Relevant published information was not found as of the revision date.
Levels in milk
Maternal Levels. Milk samples were collected from a nursing mother the day before and at 2, 6, 20, 36, and 72 hours and 7 and 14 days and 10 weeks after receiving the first dose of intradermal smallpox and monkeypox vaccine, live, nonreplicating (Jynneos, Bavarian Nordic). A second dose was given at 12 weeks and milk samples were taken at 3 hours, 3 days, and 2 and 12 weeks after the dose. Milk IgA against 3 vaccine antigens increased 0.9- to 2.2-fold 2 weeks after dose 2, reaching a peak titer increase of 1.1- to 2.7-fold at 12 weeks after dose 2. Secretory antibody levels increased to 1.1- to 2-fold at 2 weeks after dose 2 and reached a peak of 2- to 3.2-fold increase at the 12-week time point. IgA and secretory antibody responses in milk were correlated, suggesting most milk IgA was secretory IgA. No vaccine protein or DNA components were detected in the milk samples.[ 5 ] Infant Levels. Relevant published information was not found as of the revision date.
“No published information” means the studies do not exist yet — not that Monkeypox Vaccine is known to be harmful, and not that it is known to be safe. Your prescriber or pharmacist can weigh your baby's age and whether a better-studied alternative would do the same job. Worth asking before stopping a medicine you need.
Source: NIH LactMed (National Library of Medicine).
Educational summary of an authoritative source — not medical advice. Never start, stop, or change a medicine while breastfeeding without confirming with your doctor.