• Sarah Boseley, health editor

Pregnant women should be prioritised for the flu vaccine as soon as it is available, according to the authors of a study showing they are more at risk of complications and more likely to end up in hospital than other people.

Women expecting a baby should also be given antiviral drugs as soon as they get the flu, says the paper published online today by the Lancet medical journal. Little is known about the possible ill-effects of the drugs on the foetus but scientists say their benefits are likely to be greater than the risks.