Mary Prahl, MD
@mkprahl.bsky.social
Pediatric Infectious Disease Physician-Scientist | Mother | Avid hand-washer | Translational Immunology of Perinatal and Early Childhood Infections
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
Important and timely study
Pregnant women face higher risks from Ebola: maternal mortality up to 89%, and nearly all pregnancies lost. Until now, they’ve been excluded from Ebola vaccine trials. A landmark phase 3 RCT in Rwanda changes that.@natureportfolio.nature.com
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Pregnant women face higher risks from Ebola: maternal mortality up to 89%, and nearly all pregnancies lost. Until now, they’ve been excluded from Ebola vaccine trials. A landmark phase 3 RCT in Rwanda changes that.@natureportfolio.nature.com
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Heterologous two-dose Ebola vaccine regimen in pregnant women in Rwanda: a randomized controlled phase 3 trial - Nature Medicine
In this phase 3 trial, a two-dose Ebola vaccine regimen in healthy pregnant women in Rwanda was found to be safe and immunogenic in women and offspring through passive transfer.
www.nature.com
September 9, 2025 at 4:26 PM
Important and timely study
Pregnant women face higher risks from Ebola: maternal mortality up to 89%, and nearly all pregnancies lost. Until now, they’ve been excluded from Ebola vaccine trials. A landmark phase 3 RCT in Rwanda changes that.@natureportfolio.nature.com
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Pregnant women face higher risks from Ebola: maternal mortality up to 89%, and nearly all pregnancies lost. Until now, they’ve been excluded from Ebola vaccine trials. A landmark phase 3 RCT in Rwanda changes that.@natureportfolio.nature.com
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
We should be able to agree that funding research for pediatric cancer should be prioritized and expanded. Not canceled. Clinical trials that can be the last hope for kids with cancer stopping recruitment due to funding loss is heartbreaking 💔
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/28/w...
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/28/w...
Pediatric Brain Cancer Group to Lose Federal Funding
www.nytimes.com
August 29, 2025 at 7:55 PM
We should be able to agree that funding research for pediatric cancer should be prioritized and expanded. Not canceled. Clinical trials that can be the last hope for kids with cancer stopping recruitment due to funding loss is heartbreaking 💔
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/28/w...
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/28/w...
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
🚨 NEW PUBLICATION 🚨 "Pregnancy and lactation induce distinct immune responses to #COVID19 booster vaccination and SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infection" from the Roan Lab in
@jci-insight.bsky.social
@jci-insight.bsky.social
JCI Insight -
Pregnancy and lactation induce distinct immune responses to COVID-19 booster vaccination and SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infection
insight.jci.org
July 31, 2025 at 8:47 PM
🚨 NEW PUBLICATION 🚨 "Pregnancy and lactation induce distinct immune responses to #COVID19 booster vaccination and SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infection" from the Roan Lab in
@jci-insight.bsky.social
@jci-insight.bsky.social
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
A team of scientists, led by Nadia Roan, found that pregnant and lactating women have strong immune defenses to COVID-19, and identified key benefits that could guide future vaccine design.
Discovery Spotlight | Pregnancy, Lactation Shape Immune Response to COVID-19 Vaccine and Infection
YouTube video by Gladstone Institutes
youtube.com
July 31, 2025 at 2:02 PM
A team of scientists, led by Nadia Roan, found that pregnant and lactating women have strong immune defenses to COVID-19, and identified key benefits that could guide future vaccine design.
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
Study finds strong immune defenses in pregnant and lactating women, with key benefits that could guide future vaccine design.
Pregnancy, Lactation Shape Immune Response to COVID-19 Vaccine and Infection
Study finds strong immune defenses in pregnant and lactating women, with key benefits that could guide future vaccine design.
gladstone.org
July 23, 2025 at 7:18 PM
Study finds strong immune defenses in pregnant and lactating women, with key benefits that could guide future vaccine design.
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
🚨 NEW PUBLICATION 🚨 "Pregnancy and lactation induce distinct immune responses to COVID-19 booster vaccination and SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infection" from the Roan Lab in @jci-insight.bsky.social
JCI Insight -
Pregnancy and lactation induce distinct immune responses to COVID-19 booster vaccination and SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infection
insight.jci.org
July 23, 2025 at 2:08 PM
🚨 NEW PUBLICATION 🚨 "Pregnancy and lactation induce distinct immune responses to COVID-19 booster vaccination and SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infection" from the Roan Lab in @jci-insight.bsky.social
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
On a day that the congress has decided to go on an early recess and take 6 weeks of paid leave it is important to remember that in the U.S there is no federal law that guarantees paid maternity leave or family leave.
Just something to think about in case you need more things to think about today.
Just something to think about in case you need more things to think about today.
July 22, 2025 at 7:29 PM
On a day that the congress has decided to go on an early recess and take 6 weeks of paid leave it is important to remember that in the U.S there is no federal law that guarantees paid maternity leave or family leave.
Just something to think about in case you need more things to think about today.
Just something to think about in case you need more things to think about today.
Happy to share our new work @jci-insight.bsky.social insight.jci.org/articles/vie... When I was pregnant in Dec 2020, one of the many things that concerned me was if the COVID-19 vaccine would protect me as well as non-pregnant people, as I knew the high risk of COVID-19 infection in pregnancy (1/n)
insight.jci.org
July 22, 2025 at 5:15 PM
Happy to share our new work @jci-insight.bsky.social insight.jci.org/articles/vie... When I was pregnant in Dec 2020, one of the many things that concerned me was if the COVID-19 vaccine would protect me as well as non-pregnant people, as I knew the high risk of COVID-19 infection in pregnancy (1/n)
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
🚨BREAKING: IDSA, along with AAP, APHA, ACP and others, has filed a lawsuit against HHS/Secretary Kennedy to stop unlawful changes to vaccine policy and defend public health.
We refuse to stand by while America’s public health safeguards are torn apart. bit.ly/4lm7UkW
We refuse to stand by while America’s public health safeguards are torn apart. bit.ly/4lm7UkW
July 7, 2025 at 5:19 PM
🚨BREAKING: IDSA, along with AAP, APHA, ACP and others, has filed a lawsuit against HHS/Secretary Kennedy to stop unlawful changes to vaccine policy and defend public health.
We refuse to stand by while America’s public health safeguards are torn apart. bit.ly/4lm7UkW
We refuse to stand by while America’s public health safeguards are torn apart. bit.ly/4lm7UkW
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
BREAKING: Six leading medical organizations filed a lawsuit on Monday against Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the health secretary, and the health dept, charging that recent decisions limiting access to vaccines were unscientific and harmful to the public.
(Gift link)
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/07/h...
(Gift link)
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/07/h...
Medical Societies Sue Kennedy and H.H.S. Over Vaccine Advice
www.nytimes.com
July 7, 2025 at 4:30 PM
BREAKING: Six leading medical organizations filed a lawsuit on Monday against Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the health secretary, and the health dept, charging that recent decisions limiting access to vaccines were unscientific and harmful to the public.
(Gift link)
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/07/h...
(Gift link)
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/07/h...
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
Hepatitis B can be passed from parent to baby at birth - and when that happens, the consequences can be deadly. It is unscientific and dangerous to intentionally ignore the success of U.S. vaccination programs or argue that the U.S. should not vaccinate babies for hepatitis B at birth.
June 25, 2025 at 4:43 PM
Hepatitis B can be passed from parent to baby at birth - and when that happens, the consequences can be deadly. It is unscientific and dangerous to intentionally ignore the success of U.S. vaccination programs or argue that the U.S. should not vaccinate babies for hepatitis B at birth.
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
We now have presentations on COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness:
www.cdc.gov/acip/downloa...
These presentations can become very confusing so I need to explain a bit about them:
www.cdc.gov/acip/downloa...
These presentations can become very confusing so I need to explain a bit about them:
www.cdc.gov
June 25, 2025 at 3:58 PM
We now have presentations on COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness:
www.cdc.gov/acip/downloa...
These presentations can become very confusing so I need to explain a bit about them:
www.cdc.gov/acip/downloa...
These presentations can become very confusing so I need to explain a bit about them:
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
In case you needed another reason to hate Epstein-Barr virus- it looks like it might cause primary sclerosing cholangitis:
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
T and B cell responses against Epstein–Barr virus in primary sclerosing cholangitis - Nature Medicine
Interrogation of electronic health records and the B and T cell repertoires of people with PSC shows a link between Epstein–Barr virus and primary sclerosing cholangitis, an incurable autoimmune liver...
www.nature.com
June 13, 2025 at 2:25 AM
In case you needed another reason to hate Epstein-Barr virus- it looks like it might cause primary sclerosing cholangitis:
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
New Publication: We conducted a multi-country prospective comparison of 3 methods for stool processing for Xpert Ultra testing for childhood TB, and found they performed similarly and were usable and acceptable by lab workers: academic.oup.com/cid/advance-.... @cidjournal.bsky.social #tbsky #idsky
Stool processing methods for Xpert Ultra testing in childhood tuberculosis: A prospective, multi-country accuracy study
AbstractBackground. Centrifuge-free processing methods support stool Xpert Ultra testing for childhood tuberculosis (TB), but there are limited data on the
academic.oup.com
June 6, 2025 at 6:45 PM
New Publication: We conducted a multi-country prospective comparison of 3 methods for stool processing for Xpert Ultra testing for childhood TB, and found they performed similarly and were usable and acceptable by lab workers: academic.oup.com/cid/advance-.... @cidjournal.bsky.social #tbsky #idsky
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
You’re pregnant, healthy, and hearing mixed messages: RFK Jr. says you don’t need the covid vaccine, but experts at the CDC still put you in a high-risk group of people who ought to receive boosters.
Here's what the science says. 👇
kffhealthnews.org/news/article...
Here's what the science says. 👇
kffhealthnews.org/news/article...
RFK Jr. Says Healthy Pregnant Women Don’t Need Covid Boosters. What the Science Says. - KFF Health News
Despite opposition by the leader of the Department of Health and Human Services, existing evidence on the safety and efficacy of getting a covid vaccine during pregnancy all points the same way: The s...
kffhealthnews.org
June 2, 2025 at 2:04 PM
You’re pregnant, healthy, and hearing mixed messages: RFK Jr. says you don’t need the covid vaccine, but experts at the CDC still put you in a high-risk group of people who ought to receive boosters.
Here's what the science says. 👇
kffhealthnews.org/news/article...
Here's what the science says. 👇
kffhealthnews.org/news/article...
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
When Americans raised concerns about RFK Jr.'s anti-vaccine views, he said he was "not gonna take away vaccines from anybody."
But now he's taking them away from millions of mommas and babies.
Vaccine recommendations should be based on science, not RFK Jr.'s political agenda.
But now he's taking them away from millions of mommas and babies.
Vaccine recommendations should be based on science, not RFK Jr.'s political agenda.
May 27, 2025 at 6:30 PM
When Americans raised concerns about RFK Jr.'s anti-vaccine views, he said he was "not gonna take away vaccines from anybody."
But now he's taking them away from millions of mommas and babies.
Vaccine recommendations should be based on science, not RFK Jr.'s political agenda.
But now he's taking them away from millions of mommas and babies.
Vaccine recommendations should be based on science, not RFK Jr.'s political agenda.
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
ACOG is deeply disappointed by HHS’s move to drop COVID-19 vaccine recommendations in pregnancy. The science is clear: COVID-19 remains dangerous in pregnancy and vaccination protects both patients and newborns. The vaccine is safe and protects families. Read our full statement: buff.ly/OGue7sO
May 27, 2025 at 6:34 PM
ACOG is deeply disappointed by HHS’s move to drop COVID-19 vaccine recommendations in pregnancy. The science is clear: COVID-19 remains dangerous in pregnancy and vaccination protects both patients and newborns. The vaccine is safe and protects families. Read our full statement: buff.ly/OGue7sO
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
News on CDC's COVID-19 vaccine recommendation removed for pregnant women and children. #IDSky
www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...
www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...
CDC ends Covid vaccine recommendation for healthy kids and pregnant women
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — a Covid vaccine critic — made the announcement on X.
www.nbcnews.com
May 27, 2025 at 3:38 PM
News on CDC's COVID-19 vaccine recommendation removed for pregnant women and children. #IDSky
www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...
www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
Pregnancy is a major risk factor for severe COVID-19 outcomes (read: death). GOP, if you want women to have more babies, how about making it easier for women to do that without dying?
RFK Jr. says Covid-19 shot will no longer be recommended for healthy children and pregnant women | CNN
US Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced Tuesday said the Covid-19 vaccine will no longer be among the recommended vaccines for pregnant women and healthy children on the US Center...
edition.cnn.com
May 27, 2025 at 3:57 PM
Pregnancy is a major risk factor for severe COVID-19 outcomes (read: death). GOP, if you want women to have more babies, how about making it easier for women to do that without dying?
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
This is one of the dumbest health policy decisions I have ever seen.
RFK Jr. rolls back Covid vaccine recommendations for healthy children, pregnant people
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that he has unilaterally struck the recommendation that healthy children and healthy pregnant people get Covid booster shots.
www.statnews.com
May 27, 2025 at 3:40 PM
This is one of the dumbest health policy decisions I have ever seen.
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
It's quite obvious RFK.Jr has been spared the trauma of seeing pregnant people intubated in the icu with severe covid infection fighting for the lives.
Pregnancy is a risk factor for severe covid. Not recommending vaccines in pregnancy is reckless and unscientific.
www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...
Pregnancy is a risk factor for severe covid. Not recommending vaccines in pregnancy is reckless and unscientific.
www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...
CDC ends Covid vaccine recommendation for healthy kids and pregnant women
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — a Covid vaccine critic — made the announcement on X.
www.nbcnews.com
May 27, 2025 at 3:56 PM
It's quite obvious RFK.Jr has been spared the trauma of seeing pregnant people intubated in the icu with severe covid infection fighting for the lives.
Pregnancy is a risk factor for severe covid. Not recommending vaccines in pregnancy is reckless and unscientific.
www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...
Pregnancy is a risk factor for severe covid. Not recommending vaccines in pregnancy is reckless and unscientific.
www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
Makary and Prasad have a sounding board piece written in NEJM about the future of COVID-19 vaccine regulation at the FDA.
Some thoughts:
Some thoughts:
An Evidence-Based Approach to Covid-19 Vaccination | NEJM
This article from the FDA compares broad U.S. recommendations on Covid vaccination with those from other countries and announces the adoption of an evidence-based approach to such recommendations.
www.nejm.org
May 20, 2025 at 4:18 PM
Makary and Prasad have a sounding board piece written in NEJM about the future of COVID-19 vaccine regulation at the FDA.
Some thoughts:
Some thoughts:
My amazing colleague Dr. Victoria Chu highlighting the important work of CDC, and critical need for continued infectious disease support and funding. Helicopter rappelling is just one of many of her incredible accomplishments @ucsfchildrens.bsky.social
www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/20...
www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/20...
She jumped from a helicopter while at the CDC: ‘That’s the nature of public health’
Rappelling from a helicopter was not part of Victoria Chu’s job description. Her work as a disease detective typically included collecting and analyzing data.
www.washingtonpost.com
May 16, 2025 at 1:31 AM
My amazing colleague Dr. Victoria Chu highlighting the important work of CDC, and critical need for continued infectious disease support and funding. Helicopter rappelling is just one of many of her incredible accomplishments @ucsfchildrens.bsky.social
www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/20...
www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/20...
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
There is overwhelming evidence that covid is associated w worse pregnancy outcomes and complications. There is evidence that children especially those w comorbidities benefit from covid vaccines. When shots are not recommended insurance can refuse to cover the cost.
www.wsj.com/health/healt...
www.wsj.com/health/healt...
Exclusive | HHS to Stop Recommending Routine Covid Shots for Children, Pregnant Women
CDC currently recommends that everyone six months and older receive the vaccines
www.wsj.com
May 15, 2025 at 10:10 PM
There is overwhelming evidence that covid is associated w worse pregnancy outcomes and complications. There is evidence that children especially those w comorbidities benefit from covid vaccines. When shots are not recommended insurance can refuse to cover the cost.
www.wsj.com/health/healt...
www.wsj.com/health/healt...
Reposted by Mary Prahl, MD
This decision is antithetical to public health. COVID-19 in pregnancy, particularly in the third trimester, is extremely dangerous and aside from the elderly infants younger than 6 months have the highest risk of hospitalization from COVID. They are critically dependent on maternal antibodies.
Exclusive | HHS to Stop Recommending Routine Covid Shots for Children, Pregnant Women
CDC currently recommends that everyone six months and older receive the vaccines
www.wsj.com
May 15, 2025 at 11:06 PM
This decision is antithetical to public health. COVID-19 in pregnancy, particularly in the third trimester, is extremely dangerous and aside from the elderly infants younger than 6 months have the highest risk of hospitalization from COVID. They are critically dependent on maternal antibodies.