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How can maternal rubella infection early in pregnancy affect fetal development?

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human fetus; prenatal development — prenatal development An ultrasound image of a human fetus.

Maternal rubella infection during early pregnancy can have severe consequences for a developing fetus, as the virus can cross the placenta from the maternal bloodstream.12

When infection occurs within the first eight weeks of pregnancy, there is a greater than 50 percent risk of congenital malformation. This risk decreases to approximately 20 percent by the 16th week and drops sharply thereafter. The resulting condition, known as congenital rubella syndrome, is characterized by defects of the eye, heart, brain, and large arteries. In some cases, prenatal infection may also lead to the loss of the fetus.21

To prevent these outcomes, it is essential that women of childbearing age who have not had a natural infection or been immunized receive the rubella vaccine prior to becoming pregnant.1